Truly Dreadful Film

This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.

good back-story, and good acting

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

I think I'll maintain a neutral stance on this one. It may be good, or it may be bad, but listening to Italians speaking in English in Italy makes the whole thing more of a pastiche than it really is. My review really stops here but as only a minimum of ten lines qualifies as a review, here is some waffle which you may ignore if you choose to. If you read the book already you may be disappointed. If you haven't, and really feel that you need to know what the secret of Santa Vitoria is you have the choice of either reading the book which is enjoyable but takes a longer time, or seeing the film, especially if you are the kind of person that doesn't like subtitles and don't mind listening to Italian peasants, all with a gift for foreign languages.

I missed the first half hour on Turner last night, but tuned in and was thoroughly entertained. This is top notch Anthony Quinn- he is terrific, and the entire cast is excellent. Looking forward to seeing the entire film now. Unlike another reviewer, I loved his over-the-top reaction to the German Captain's telling him he wanted the village's wine. Hardy Kruger, as the captain, gives a nuanced performance that adds a great deal to the film.One of the great joys of this movie is the Italian location and extras. The economics of contemporary movie making rarely allow for true location shooting anymore, and its too bad. As these films from the 60s and 70s age, they become increasingly valuable as an historical record.This movie also has a wonderful heart- it's a celebration of what makes life worth living. Highly recommended.

This film has a great director, writer, and has a cast of excellent stars, including Anthony Quinn. Everybody knows him as Zorba the Greek, but hardly anyone recalls Quinn as Bombolini. Quinn goes from hen pecked town drunk to the man who saves the town from the Nazi's hunt for the town's treasure, Italien Vermouth. This is a WWII movie that shows a town getting rid of one Italian dictator, only to be faced with Hitler's gang. Quinn's character is deliciously funny. The simple man faces the professional and orderly German army and bests them using his wit instead of guns. Hardy Kruger, playing the perfect German officer, expresses bewilderment when faced with idea that such a slob could win the battle for the Vermouth.

What a movie. The horror of the second world war was that it destroyed millions of normal people's lives throughout the world. This is just one small village in Italy that has survived Mussolini, but now must face the Germans that are coming to take the only thing they have, their wine. The only thing that stands in their way is the town drunk Bombolini (Anthony Quinn in one of his greatest performances). I don't know if this was based on a true story but I hope it was, this small, delightful movies shows why the Germans could never win the war, because no matter how brutal they were they could not take the soul of people. In one of the greatest lines in movie history, the German Captain, (Hardy Kruger in his best role ever), understands all of this when he cries in the end, "What kind of people are you?". This movie is as good as any book could be and seeing the faces of the villagers makes it all the more real.