Indexing my movie reviews I’ve noticed a surprising omission, one of my favorite comedies, Aldo, Giovanni and Giacomo’s Tu La Conosci Claudia. It’s in my special group of films with others like La Vita Che Vorrei, L’uomo Perfetto, and Pane e Tulipani, ones that I’ve watched so many times that I know most of the lines and yet still laugh at the jokes like it’s the first time I’ve heard them.
Written by and starring the comedy tri of Aldo Baglio, Giovanni Storti, and Giacomo Poretti, it’s the story of three guys that share a love for Claudia, played by the adorable Paola Cortellesi who almost steals the show (not the easiest thing with those three).
Beginning with Claudia’s voiceover searching to explain why she married Giovanni (Storti) in the first place, she appears to be reading our minds. I mean, look at them, wearing the surprise that Giovanni has brought home for his wife “The Relaxomatic. What’s wrong with this picture?
What Giovanni lacks in the looks department he doesn’t make up with personality; he just wants to stay home and watch “Password” on TV and we’re not shocked to learn that Claudia is in therapy. When she decides that the key to her happiness is altruism, however misguided, Giovanni gets a wakeup call and decides to fight for his marriage.
Tu La Conosci Claudia is lots of fun for lots of reasons and in ways not immediately obvious. Let’s consider all the ways that this movie could suck: a) The romantic leading men are not your classicly handsome romantic leads. b) in fact, they are comedians and more comedian than actor, and c) they love to plug gags from their comedy routines in their movies. This movie could have ended up a jokey, embarrassing mess, but it’s not that at all.
There are jokes and it is funny. In this scene Aldo, a cab driver, drops off his fare, an Asian businessman, “practically almost” at the requested address, “Corso Magenta, Angolo Carducci”, and tells him that if he doesn’t find it, to “ask someone, or call a cab”.
And when Aldo, Giovanni and Giacomo embark on a road trip, in a joint effort to recover the object of their affection, Claudia, they bump into Aldo’s heroine:
But even with the unlikely married couple and Claudia’s implausable solution to her problems, Tu La Conosci Claudia is not a stupid farce; it’s a sweet, sentimental, funny love story with authentic, honest emotions between mature, likeable characters. For those of us that are tired of the same, insulting, lowbrow humor that we can’t seem to rid ourselves in Hollywood movies, this is an example of what a comedy can and should be.
2004 – Director: Massimo Venier
Writers: Aldo, GIovanni, Giacomo, Valerio Bariletti and Massimo Venier
Stars: Aldo, Giovanni and Giacomo and Paola Cortellesi
I Love Italian Everything 