RAPINIAMO IL DUCE/ROBBING MUSSOLINI
Italy, 2022, 96 minutes, Colour.
Pietro Castellitto, Matilda De Angelis, Tommaso Ragno, Isabella Ferrari, Alberto Astori, Filippo Timi.
Directed by Renato De Maria.
A combination of history, a heist, some comedy – and the statement that some of this action is based on actual events.
It is 1944-45, Mussolini is still in control but is moving towards downfall, and escaping to Switzerland with the accumulated money, jewellery and artworks. We are in Milan. Which is where the treasure is, a fortified area of the city, heavily cut off and guarded.
The main character in this story is, actually a thief, inheriting from his family, something of a confidence man as well. Contacts also with the partisans. He is played by Pietro Castellitto (son of celebrated Italian actor, Sergio Castellitto, quite some visual similarity). He is also in love with a singer at a night club, Yvonne (Matilda De Angelis) who is also the mistress of one of the commanders in Milan, specialising in interrogation – and some violent torture. He is actually married to a fading actress, Nora (Isabella Ferrari – who, in fact, is the wife of the film’s director, Renato De Maria). She still seeks the limelight, watches her old movies, and wants payback for the infidelities of her husband.
And, of course, the idea is to steal all the treasure and the group has only five days to gather together, prepare a plan, execution. And, on screen, we see the notes of how many days till the heist.
The main character has the nickname Isola because he is a loner. Which is not quite true because he relies very much on a friend of his father, Marcello, a white-haired bearded grizzled old character (who looks very much like American actor Sam Elliott). There is also a young accountant who is prepared to join in the plan and a young woman, agile and shrewd, who takes a liking to the young man. Marcello does a bit of recruiting, finding and old comrades with whom he has fallen out but it is an expert in explosives. And they also invite a champion car driver to join them.
Yvonne has to give them inside information as well as to steal the commander’s seal so that fact documents can be produced.
A lot of attention is given to the characters themselves, quite lively, and preparing the plot for the robbery. There is also an attention to the alienation of Nora from her husband and his wanting to escape with the treasure and Eve on to Switzerland.
There is quite an unexpected twist when Nora confronts Isola and attempts to take charge of the whole heist, her bodyguard, her henchman, the to-ing and fro-ing of power. And her violent attack on her unfaithful husband.
So, a lot of interest in the characters and the preparation for the heist, collaborations and betrayals, and the details of how the heist is actually done, infiltration of the secure zone by pretending that Isola is a prisoner to be transferred, the setting up of the dynamite, the attack on the troops, the partisans, the getaway car, the finding of the treasure and luxuriating in it. As well as Isola and Yvonne on being happily reunited – and the demise of Nora!
