Boccaccio ‘70

Anthology films were all the rage in the 1960s, and this one from 1962—featuring modern tales of love and intrigue reminiscent of the hundred fables that 14th-century author and poet Boccaccio spun in his Decameron—is among the most memorable, featuring works focusing on women made by some of the most notable Italian directors of the time. The Temptation of Dr. Antonio is a typically extravagant fantasy by Federico Fellini in which a prudish activist (Peppino De Filippo) more than meets his match when a 50-foot Anita Ekberg climbs down from the billboard he's been railing against to seduce him. Luchino Visconti's The Job is an elegant talkfest in which a philandering count (Tomas Milian) tries to dissuade his rich wife (Romy Schneider) from divorcing him, while in Vittorio De Sica's ebullient The Raffle, Sophia Loren plays a sexy carnival barker who offers a night in her bed as a prize in order to raise money for her friends, only to then find true love. As a bonus the beautifully restored widescreen transfer adds a fourth entry: Mario Monicelli's Renzo and Luciana, which was edited out of the original American release. Although lacking similar star power, Monicelli's film tells a pleasant tale of two young office workers who secretly marry against company policy. Boccaccio '70 doesn't equal the best full-length features of any of the four helmsmen, but it's a fine divertissement. Blu-ray extras include stills galleries. Recommended. [Note: Boccaccio '70 is also available on DVD in the boxed set Great Italian Directors Collection—which includes Monicelli's Casanova '70 and Michelangelo Antonioni's Story of a Love Affair—priced at $49.95.] (F. Swietek)