Risi elevates the Italian comedy to stratospheric heights in this absolute classic of a buddy road movie with two exceptional performances from Vittorio Gassman and Jean-Louis Trintignant, as it deals with themes of freedom, hedonism and consequences.
Review #2,836
Dir. Dino Risi
1962 | Italy | Comedy, Drama | 105 min | 1.85:1 | Italian
Not rated – likely to be PG13 for some sexual references
Cast: Vittorio Gassman, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Catherine Spaak
Plot: Roberto, a shy law student in Rome, meets Bruno, a forty-year-old exuberant, capricious man, who takes him for a drive through the Roman and Tuscany countries in the summer. When their journey starts to blend into their daily lives though, the pair’s newfound friendship is tested.
Awards: –
Source: Surf Films
Accessibility Index
Subject Matter: Moderate – Buddy Road Movie; Freedom & Consequences; Friendship
Narrative Style: Slightly Complex
Pace: Normal
Audience Type: Slightly Mainstream
Viewed: Criterion Blu-ray
Spoilers: No
It was the early 1960s and the death knell on neorealism had already been several years in the past.
While directors like Michelangelo Antonioni made slow and bleak films about modern alienation and relationship crises (cheekily referenced in Il sorpasso), some filmmakers pursued what was called commedia all’italiana (or Italian comedy), bringing a balance of commercial appeal and craftsmanship to a popular genre.
Il sorpasso (also known as The Easy Life) by Dino Risi was arguably one of its finest exemplars. There is nothing frivolous about comedy filmmaking, and Risi elevated it into an enduring piece of art.
It is still as fresh today as it had been in 1962, benefiting very much from riveting characters, stunning widescreen cinematography and witty dialogue.
When Roberto (Jean-Louis Trintignant), a straight-laced law student serendipitously encounters Bruno (Vittorio Gassman), a blunt and snarky older man who lives life on the edge, he couldn’t have imagined a road trip in Bruno’s iconic Lancia Aurelia B24 would give him the joie de vie that has been perennially missing in his monotonous life.
“I’ll go anywhere as long as I’m driving.”
What exceptional performances by Gassman and Trintignant, whose chemistry radiates in full effect from the get-go. Although one may describe Risi’s work as a buddy road movie, it is also about decisions and consequences.
Is living life to the fullest about pure freedom or is there something more, like a sense of groundedness in the pursuit of happiness?
Nary a dull moment, Il sorpasso brings us into the heart of Rome and the Tuscany countryside with its lovely beaches.
One of the film’s visual motifs is the overtaking of cars on the highway (apparently, ‘sorpasso’ reflects that culture of Italian driving), with Bruno activating his annoying musical horn more times than necessary.
If the act of ‘overtaking’ signals class differences (well, an expensive, and therefore, powerful car can do the job more easily), it is also a veiled marker of materialism—or even hedonism.
Bruno and Roberto may be opposites in terms of personality and worldview, but which Italy will survive in the latter years of economic decline and social tensions?
Grade: A
Trailer:
Music:
Eternality Tan 
[…] with a sidecar, recalling the free-spirited vibes of, say, the Italian classic buddy road movie Il sorpasso (1962); the other is a brief paddling of a boat across a river to a house that holds memories for […]
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