The son of a famous movie critic, Carlo Verdone grew up rubbing elbows with the likes of Roberto Rossellini and Vittorio De Sica and his first attempt at making a movie was a short film that he shot with a video camera that Isabella Rossellini sold him.
Brother-in-law of Cristian De Sica, he’s considered the modern-day Alberto Sordi, and together with his love for popular culture, rock music, and the city of Rome, Carlo Verdone is truly beloved by Italians, and by me. Checco Zalone is in his rear view mirror and coming up fast, but for now, Verdone is the reigning king of comedy, often playing a sad sack Roman, his wife having just left him, trying to find a little happiness in a word that seems to thwart him at every turn.
He’s the winner of Italian Academy Awards, Golden Globes, and Nastro d’Argentos and he is a national treasure that Americans should know. We’ll have our chance in the next few months; he stars with Toni Servillo in Paolo Sorrentino’s masterpiece, La Grande Bellezza (The Great Beauty).
Most of my favorite Carlo Verdone films like Maledetto il Giorno Che T’Incontrato wth Margherita Buy are not available in the US, but If you’d like to get to know Carlo Verdone, try this one:
Iris Blond , with Claudia Gerini, Verdone plays Romeo, who is told by a tarot card reader that the woman of his dreams speaks in verse and has the name of a flower, so when he meets Iris (Gerini), Romeo is convinced that he’s found her.
And make sure that you SAVE ‘THE GREAT BEAUTY’ ON NETFLIX.
I Love Italian Everything 