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persona, it is the second that gives us a glimpse of his remark-
able chameleonic abilities as an actor. While comical, gang-
ster Johnny is also a menacing figure and one to be feared,
even if not taken completely seriously. This basic premise is
not unlike that of the little known Buster Keaton film, The
King of the Champs-Elysée, a 1934 French comedy in which
Keaton plays both a variation of his usual screen character
and a ruthless gangster.
Through a chance meeting with Johnny’s wife, Maria
(played by Braschi), the unknowing Dante is invited to stay
at the Stecchino villa – to be used as a decoy to deflect atten-
tion away from the gangster in hiding. Numerous farcical sit-
uations ensue, the most hilarious running gag being the inno-
cent Dante’s impression that he’s being dogged by those
around him for banana theft, when really he’s being pursued
by hit men and betrayed m a f i o s i. Another is his being misled
into believing that cocaine is really a miracle medicine for
diabetes! The film is full of such gags and yet remains a light
and bittersweet piece of sublime entertainment. The jaunty
evocative musical score by Evan Lurie is also a treat.
The film was released on VHS and laserdisc [ID23244LI]
by New Line Home Video in 1993 and is in Italian with English
subtitles. The transfer is quite nice and brings out the rich col-
ors of the Italian locales, although several cropped shots
show that it could have benefited from letterboxing. The retail
price of the laserdisc was recently reduced to $20 (down from
$40), although the disc appears to have just gone out of print.
The VHS, which also retails for $20, is still available.
Night On Earth
1991 • 128 minutes
Jim Jarmusch just couldn’t keep himself from using the great
Benigni in yet another of his quirky films. Night On Earth is a
unique concept film (sporting a lurching Kurt Weillesque To m
Waits score) that proves that variety is the spice of life. The
gimmick: five taxi cab rides which take place in succession in
different major cities on Earth (Los Angeles, New York, Paris,
Rome, Helsinki). While all five stories are interesting, the New
York and Rome segments are the most piquant. Benigni, of
course, is featured in the Rome episode and gives a tour de
f o r c e of hilarity in his characterization of Gino, an eccentric,
whacked-out cabby who picks up a weary priest (played with
beautiful comic restraint by Paolo Bonacelli, who also
appeared to great effect in Johnny Stecchino). Upon picking up
his holy fare, Gino spews a barrage of conversation at the padre
– and then gets a bright idea. Since he hasn’t been to church in
quite a while, he asks the priest to hear his confession.
Undaunted by the priest’s protestations, Gino relates with great
gusto his rather odd string of sexual escapades – starting from
puberty! Only an artist of Benigni’s winning personality and
temperament could pull off such an outrageous routine without
appearing sleazy. The sequence is a comic gem,
arguably the highlight of the film.
Both New Line Home Vi d e o ’s VHS and laserdisc
[ID2246LI] releases derive from the same solid
widescreen (1.85:1) transfer that really can’t be fault-
ed, considering how much of this film takes place in dark cabs at
night, lit by the streetlights of the different environments. The
VHS retails for $15 while the laserdisc is one of the most sought
after out-of-print titles around.
Son of the Pink Panther
1993 • 93 minutes
Let’s face it – when the great Peter Sellers died, he took the
key to the Pink Panther series with him. The five “Clouseau”
films that he and comic director Blake Edwards created are
classics of the genre and still constitute the most successful
feature slapstick series ever created. After Sellers’ death,
Edwards and United Artists tried to revive the series with two
companion films produced at the same time. Using many of
the series regulars, he fashioned Trail of the Pink Panther
(1982), which utilized sequences from the previous films as
well as unused ones to tell the story of the “missing” Inspec-
tor Clouseau. This was followed by Curse of the Pink Panther
(1983), which attempted to revive the series by introducing
Clifton Sleigh (Ted Wass) as the second worst detective in the
world. The mediocrity of these two entries appeared to bring
an end to the Panther.
But then a decade later there appeared a beacon of hope.
Comic sensation Roberto Benigni would be a natural to revive
the series – and what better way to bring him on board than to
fashion a premise where he could play Clouseau’s long hidden
(illegitimate) son – the product of a brief romantic tryst with
Maria Gambrelli (Elke Sommer’s character in A Shot In The
D a r k , now played by Claudia Cardinale, Princess Dala in the
Roberto on the Internet
If you are internet savvy, you can check out Benigni’s up-to-
date filmography on the popular Internet Movie Database at:
http://uk.imdb.com/Name?Benigni,+Roberto.
A delightful “Un-Official Roberto Benigni Fan Site” can be
accessed at: http://lavender.fortunecity.com/wildbunch/334/.
Seeking Asylum (Chiedo Asilo)
1979 • 112 minutes
I
n what is, I hope, only the first of numerous home-video
unearthings of Benigni’s past work, Image Entertainment
has just released Seeking Asylum [ID4771SI] in Italian with
English subtitles on VHS ($20) and on DVD ($25). (The cas-
sette we viewed had a serious glitch for the first few minutes,
which we assume was particular to our copy and not an arti-
fact of Image’s master.) The film stars Benigni as a unorthodox
kindergarten teacher (named Roberto – what else?) whose
anarchic manner with his pupils is not unlike the school scene
in Life Is Beautiful. But as the film goes on, we see that he
regards his charges more as experimental material than any-
thing else. Suspicions of comic ideas and glimpses of the
Benigni to come are in evidence here – not surprising since he
was a co-writer on the film. However, while shot in a sponta-
neous and improvisational manner, the film is mired in ennui
and ambiguity (and ends on a strange and unexpected mysti-
cal note) thanks to its writer/director, the late Marco Ferreri.
Considering Ferreri’s controversial cinematic output, this film
seems to be his most conventional – which is not saying a lot!
If you love Benigni, it’s worth a look, but don’t expect an urge
for multiple viewings.
The transfer appears to be an old one, which, short of let-
terboxing, could have used some attention in the composi-
tional framing department.
The Only DVD…