Italian Gothic Horror Films (1980-1989)

by Roberto Curti

  castle in Transylvania—which Fracchia has told

  commission rejected the request of lowering the rating to

  Filini is just outside Rome. Upon their arrival by

  a V.M.4.

  car, the two men find accommodation at an inn

  10. Gomarasca, “Intervista a Lamberto Bava,” 40.

  11. Alberto Morsiani, “Intervista a Sergio Stivaletti,” in

  and learn that the villagers fear the mysterious

  Rosso italiano (1977/1978), 93.

  Count Vlad. At the castle, they discover that it is

  12. The film had been submitted to the BBFC by Avatar

  still occupied by the mysterious Count and his sis-

  Communications Ltd. in January 987, with the BBFC

  ter Oniria, who sleep in coffins and turn out to

  trimming 2 minutes and 4 seconds, resulting in a running

  time of 86 minutes and 6 seconds.

  be vampires. Oniria falls for Fracchia, who is still

  13. Walter Goodman, “Screen: Demons, by Bava,” New

  a virgin, and decides to marry him. However, the

  York Times, May 3, 986.

  vampire girl is destined to marry the Frankenstein

  monster, who shows up at the castle. The Count

  Fracchia contro Dracula (Who Is Afraid

  has Fracchia and the monster challenge one an-

  of Dracula?, a.k.a. Fracchia Vs. Dracula)

  other to a game of tennis and poker to decide who

  D: Neri Parenti. S and SC: Franco Marotta,

  will marry Oniria, and Fracchia wins. At the cer-

  Laura Toscano, Neri Parenti, Paolo Villaggio;

  emony, attended by a horde of monsters and zom-

  28 1985 Fracchia bies, Fracchia and Filini are saved at the last mo-femme blanche, 974) and Pupi Avati (La mazurka

  ment by Luna, the sister of a deceased vampire

  del barone, della santa e del fico fiorone, 97), but

  hunter, and Fracchia accidentally kills the Count

  by the mid–Eighties the actor was merely treading

  with his own umbrella. However, it all turns out

  water, offering his audience tired slapstick farces

  to be a nightmare, as the fearful Fracchia had

  which repeated the same gags over and over, ad

  fallen asleep at the theater while watching a horror

  nauseam. This had to do in no small part with his

  movie…

  family vicissitudes, namely his 23-year-old son

  Since the outstanding success of Fantozzi

  Pierfrancesco’s heroin addiction: in 984, after

  (97, Luciano Salce), about a sad, awkward and

  many unsuccessful attempts at helping him, Vil-

  unlucky accountant who is bullied by his bosses,

  laggio had him hospitalized in the San Patrignano

  colleagues and practically everyone he meets,

  rehab community, where the young man would

  Paolo Villaggio’s consistent popularity at the box-

  eventually detox from drugs.2

  office during the mid- to-late 970s and the 980s

  The second Fracchia movie, Fracchia contro

  was guaranteed by the repetition of his trademark

  Dracula, had the 3-year-old Villaggio and the

  screen persona. In fact, in addition to the Fantozzi

  co- scriptwriters Laura Toscano and Franco

  sequels, Villaggio brought to the screen other

  Marotta (a duo of comedy specialists who had

  characters who, despite having a different name,

  worked among others with Giorgio Capitani on

  were basically more of the same. Such was Gian-

  Bollenti spiriti) borrow again from a horror

  domenico Fracchia, a meek accountant that the

  staple, after 979’s Dottor Jekyll e gentile signora,

  actor had first played on television in 968, in the

  and marked the actor’s eight teaming with Par-

  program Quelli della domenica. Pathologically

  enti, by then his regular director.

  shy, cowardly, slavish to the point of

  masochism, Fracchia is continually vic-

  timized by his superior (“Com’è umano

  lei!,” “How humane you are,” is his

  catchphrase, which he utters after being

  insulted and humiliated by his boss).

  Villaggio reprised many of Fracchia’s

  traits with Fantozzi, the protagonist of

  his 97 novel and the subsequent films;

  he revived the character in the 97 TV

  miniseries Giandomenico Fracchia—

  Sogni proibiti di uno di noi, and eventu-

  ally adapted it for the big screen with

  the slapstick comedy Fracchia la belva

  umana (98, Neri Parenti).

  However, the formula grew tired

  quickly, despite Villaggio’s qualities as

  a comedian and the screenwriters’ trick

  of “borrowing” from old movies for

  plot ideas: Fracchia la belva umana was

  inspired by John Ford’s classic comedy

  The Whole Town’s Talking (93) and

  Sogni mostruosamente proibiti (982,

  Neri Parenti) reworked the basic plot

  of the Danny Kaye classic The Secret

  Life of Walter Mitty (947, Norman Z.

  McLeod). Villaggio’s turns before the

  camera in the early 970s had been

  characterized by a willingness to accept

  bold roles, with his participation in

  movies by important directors such as

  Italian poster for Fracchia contro Dracula (1985, Neri Par-

  Nanni Loy (Sistemo l’America e torno,

  enti), a Dracula spoof starring Paolo Villaggio and edmund

  973), Marco Ferreri (Touchez pas à la

  Purdom (as Dracula).

  1985: Fracchia

  29

  The opening, with Fracchia watching a hor-

  The film’s use of Gothic stereotypes steals

  ror movie with his fiancée, recalls an episode of

  liberally from various sources, from the Addams

  the anthology comedy I motorizzati (96), where

  Family TV series to Mel Brooks’ Young Franken-

  Ugo Tognazzi was scared to death by La maschera

  stein (974), not forgetting Roman Polanski’s The

  del demonio. Here, the film Fracchia cannot even

  Fearless Vampire Killers (967). A fun macabre

  bear to watch, to the point that he asks a little kid

  gag finds Boris having his hand chopped off by

  sitting next to him to tell him what is happening

  the butler (who is chopping meat for the soup),

  on screen, is Return of the Living Dead (98, Dan

  and later retrieving it from Fracchia’s plate when

  O’Bannon), released in Italy by Titanus, the same

  dinner is served; in the same scene the butler

  distribution company as Villaggio’s film. The

  keeps pouring wine outside Fracchia’s glass just

  punchline to the scene—the frightened Fracchia

  as the blind hermit played by Gene Hackman

  jumping back after a scare and causing a disas-

  did with the hot soup in Young Frankenstein. A

  trous Rube Goldberg–like chain reaction, with

  Frankenstein monster shows up too, played by

  all the rows behind him overturning and the rest

  stuntman Romano Puppo and addressed by

  of the audience ending up on the floor—is em-

  Dracula as “advocate,” and Villaggio
and com-

  blematic of Villaggio’s comedy antics, which draw

  pany exploit the monster’s presence for comedy

  from the physicality of the silent movie era; yet

  in the absurdist sequence of the tennis match, a

  it is so hastily rendered, cinematically speaking,

  rendition of a hilarious episode in the first Fan-

  that it gives away the slapdash nature of the mise-

  tozzi film. The wedding ceremony, with the vir-

  en-scène. Parenti is not a filmmaker on the level

  ginal Fracchia dressed in white like a bride (“Do

  of Capitani, and it shows.

  I look good in this dress?” he asks Filini) and an

  Still, the plot is more than just an excuse

  attendance of various monsters—including an-

  for the protagonist’s antics, and despite some

  other regular of the Fantozzi series, the freaky-

  openly silly dialogue (“I’m Kaspar, vampire

  looking Plinio Fernando in an uncredited bit

  hunter” “Giandomenico Fracchia” “Exorcist?”

  role—is decidedly more amusing.

  “No, real estate agent”) it is endearing and well-

  As Dracula, Edmund Purdom looks amused

  structured. Even though Toscano claimed that

  and suitably self- ironic, and seems more alive

  she liked the film very much, she pointed at

  than in most of the roles he played over the years,

  budget constraints as the film’s most blatant

  in his special appearances in films ranging from

  issue, its cheapness: “The effects were bad, the

  mediocre to terrible. His best scene has him per-

  monsters were not as they should have been.”3

  form for his guest, playing the balalaika for Frac-

  If Fracchia contro Dracula is at least one step up

  chia and Filini, and singing with different voices

  from the low level of many Italian comedies of

  (including a woman’s, which belongs to one of

  the 980s, characterized by careless filmmaking

  his previous victims: an interesting addition to

  and poor production values, most of the credit

  the Dracula canon which goes lost in the story).

  goes to Luciano Tovoli’s cinematography and

  As his “little sister” Oniria, the ravishing Ania

  Giovanni Licheri’s production design. Tovoli

  Pieroni makes her last movie appearance. She

  tries hard to convey a Gothic feel with plenty of

  would become one of the more influential per-

  day- for-night scenes tinted in icy blue and

  sonalities in Italian television. The cast also fea-

  splashes of bright red in the interiors, while the

  tures two actors usually associated with commit-

  set pieces are atmospheric and subtly parodic,

  ted auteur cinema: Cederna, seen in Marco

  as is Bruno Zambrini’s score.

  Bellocchio’s Enrico IV (984) and later to become

  Villaggio also reprises the Mr. Magoo- like

  a renowned stage actor and writer, and Isabella

  character of Filini (played by his regular comedy

  Ferrari.

  aside Gigi Reder) from the Fantozzi series, and

  The reviews were rather positive: the Cor-

  Reder provides some of the best gags, such as

  riere della Sera’s critic Giovanni Grazzini praised

  when the short- sighted Filini mistakes vampire

  the production values and wrote that “Fracchia

  bats for canaries, or says he smells a rotten goat

  contro Dracula displays a silliness that here and

  whenever Dracula’s stinking hunchback servant

  there touches the sublime.”4 Yet, despite a release

  Boris (Giuseppe Cederna) is around. On the

  during the Christmas holidays, the most com-

  other hand, as Villaggio himself claimed, the im-

  mercially fruitful period of the year, the film was

  perturbable blind butler, played by veteran char-

  a disappointment at the box- office, with only 88

  acter actor Filippo Degara, was inspired by P.G.

  million lire, and ended up at the 60th spot

  Wodehouse’s character, Jeeves.

  among the top- grossers of the year. Despite the

  30 1985: Monster wave of horror and vampire comedies of the pe-Re-recording: Alberto Tinebra. Cast: Alice Cooper

  riod, such as Transylvania 6–5000 (98, Rudy

  [Vincent Furnier] (Vince Raven), Victoria Vera

  De Luca) and I Married a Vampire (987, Jay

  (Sandra), Carlos Santurio (Frank), María José

  Raskin), it didn’t find much of an audience

  Sarsa (Marilou), Pepita James (Angela), Emilio

  abroad: Variety labeled it “a hard sell.” It became

  Linder (Jordan), Charly Bravo (Lou), Barta Barri

  marginally known as a curio, under the title

  (Old man), Ricardo Palacios (Sheriff Morrison),

  Who Is Afraid of Dracula?, gaining some foot-

  Luis Maluenda (Deputy), Fernando Conde (Ed),

  notes in reference books.

  Fernando Baeza (Jerome), Nino Bastida (Greg).

  Villaggio’s output for the remainder of the

  PROD: Eduard Sarlui for Continental Motion

  decade consisted mostly of hit- and-run, forget-

  Pictures, M&C Films, Royal Films; EP: Helen Sar-

  table comedies, often teamed with other popular

  lui [Szabo], Eduard Sarlui; Line Producer: Carlos

  names such as Renato Pozzetto and Lino Banfi.

  Aured; PM: Roberto Bessi; PA: John Senovilla;

  By the end of the 980s he decided to renew his

  PAcc: Jesse [Jesús García] Gárgoles; PSe: Vince

  image, and in the following years he alternated

  Ortega. Country: Spain. Filmed in Torrelodones,

  his more commercial work with several inter-

  Madrid. Running time: 84 minutes (U.S. version);

  esting projects, including Federico Fellini’s last

  88 minutes (International version). Spanish Visa

  film, La voce della luna (989), followed by Io

  n. 9632 (8.6.988); Rating: not recommended

  speriamo che me la cavo (992, Lina Wertmüller),

  for those under 8 years old. Release dates:

  Il segreto del bosco vecchio (993, Ermanno

  7..986 (USA—Home video); 9..986 (U.K.—

  Olmi), Cari fottutissimi amici (994, Mario Mon-

  Home video); 8.6.988 (Spain); Distribution:

  icelli) and Denti (2000, Gabriele Salvatores).

  Trans World entertainment (U.S.—Home video);

  Union Films S.A. (Spain); Eureka Video (Italy;

  Notes

  Home video). Also known as: The Bite; Monster

  Dog—Il signore dei cani (Italy); Los perros de la

  1. Fantozzi (97, Luciano Salce), Il secondo tragico Fan-

  tozzi (976, Luciano Salce), Fantozzi contro tutti (980, Neri

  muerte; Uma noite de Horror (Brazil).

  Parenti and Paolo Villaggio), Fantozzi subisce ancora (983,

  Note: The songs “Identity Crisises” and “See

  Neri Parenti), Superfantozzi (98, Neri Parenti), Fantozzi

  Me in the Mirror” are written by Alice Cooper,

  va in pensione (988, Neri Parenti), Fantozzi alla riscossa

  arranged and orchestrated by Terry Bautista.

  (990, Neri Parenti), Fantozzi in paradiso (993, Neri Par-
>
  Rock star Vince Raven, his girlfriend Sandra,

  enti), Fantozzi—Il ritorno (996, Neri Parenti) and Fantozzi

  2000—La clonazione (999, Domenico Saverni).

  and Vince’s film crew drive to the singer’s old child-

  2. Natalia Aspesi, “Noi difendiamo Muccioli,” Repub-

  hood home to shoot a music video. Along the way

  blica, May 2, 984.

  they are warned by the local sheriff that there has

  3. G. Gs. [Giovanna Grassi], “Fracchia e Dracula,” Cor-

  been a wolf attack in the area. Soon the sheriff and

  riere della Sera, October 30. 98.

  4. G. Gr. [Giovanni Grazzini], “Fracchia alle prese col

  his deputy are killed by a monster. After an en-

  vampiro,” Corriere della Sera, December 27, 98.

  counter with a crazy old man who warns them of

  5. Variety, February 9, 986.

  impending danger, Vince and his crew arrive at

  the house. A girl in the crew, Angela, has a night-

  Monster Dog, a.k.a. Leviatán (Monster

  mare about Vince being a werewolf, and he tells

  Dog)

  her that his father was affected by lycanthropy and

  D: Clyde Anderson [Claudio Fragasso]. S

  was lynched by an angry mob. The video shoot is

  and SC: Clyde Anderson [Claudio Fragasso]

  interrupted after the discovery of the dead care-

  [and Rossella Drudi, uncredited]; DOP: José

  taker’s body, and some angry locals show up at the

  García Galisteo (Technicolor); M: Grupo Di-

  house to kill Vince, whom they believe is respon-

  chotomy; E: Antonio José Ochoa; Additional ed-

  sible for the murders. A shootout ensues, while a

  iting: Gabrio Astori, Peter Teschner; Additional

  pack of wild dogs break into the house and cause

  editors: Giorgio Conti, Mercedes G. Alted; ArtD:

  havoc. Vince and Sandra try to get away but are

  Andrés Gumersindo; CO: María Eugenia Es-

  attacked by the werewolf. The monster turns out

  crivá; SPFX, SE: Carlo De Marchis; AD: Michael

  to be the old man they first met, who in turn had

  Gutierez; C: Julio Madurga; AC: Joe Villava,

  been infected by Vince’s father. Vince, who has

  Michael A. Clavijo; SO: José Mendieta; W:

  been bitten, starts turning into a werewolf too, but

  Teresa García; ChEl: Vince Lozano; G: José Fer-

  Sandra shoots him.

  rándiz, Joe Garcia, Pedro Ramírez; KG: Alfonso

  “At first I thought I had to be like other Ital-

  Barambio; SS: Victoria Melian; SOE: Studio