Under the excellent and taut direction (or maybe more accurately masterful conception) of Lina Wertmuller, Giancarlo Giannini and the rest of the superb cast tell an unforgettable story. As other reviewers have already noted, as an example of how well this film is crafted, the music selections are inspired, indeed the whole movie is just suffused with exquisite artistry contributed by entire cast and crew.Wertmuller apparently based the character of Pasqualino on a real person's story. In the hands of Hollywood hacks, he would be, at best, a two-dimensional "bad guy" and the film's moral would be rendered simplistically enough to be graspable by people raised on empty spectacles Hollywood incessantly pitches at infantilized audiences. Instead, her inspired telling of this somewhat absurd tale dips and soars constantly; this is a veritable cinematic roller-coaster taking the viewer from farce to tragedy to irony without much of a chance to catch a breath. Fasten those seat belts, for sure.Giannini is at his peak in this film as the protagonist(?). The nuances of complex feelings he conveys solely with his facial expressions span an incredible range. An absolutely towering performance, capturing all the possible emotions of a crazy lifetime within one film.One of my all-time favorites, a film every serious student of the art form should see and learn from. I cannot recommend it enough. And yes, don't watch the dubbed version, revel in the original, glorious Italian (with a Neapolitan accent) of our anti-hero.This is NOT a date movie. Expect to be shaken AND stirred to the bottom of your being. You'll never forget the experience of seeing it the first time.

Lina Wertmüller's cinema remained unknown to me until I watched Pasqualino Settebellezze, but now I can say she has made one of the finest movies I've ever seen. She's succeeded in creating an unforgettable character, Pasqualino, a lovable rogue, and give one of the most cynical and funniest looks at human nature and at Man's will to survive.Giancarlo Giannini plays Pasqualino, a Neapolitan crook who wants to make a name for himself and protect the honour of his household composed of his mother and several sisters. When one of his sisters becomes a prostitute he kills her pimp and disposes of the body in a creative way: by hacking it into three pieces and shipping each one to a different city. The inexperience Pasqualino is caught, but the "Monster of Naples" fakes madness and gets sent to an asylum. Then with WWII starting, he manages to get recruited just so he can desert. Only he deserts in the middle of Germany and gets taken to a concentration camp where he seduces the sadistic Kapo in return for favours.This movie is undoubtedly a comedy, the black, misanthropic type that revels in making fun of everything that's rotten and horrible in people. Pasqualino's will to live to would bring to one's mind movies like The Pianist or Life Is Beautiful, hymns to human hope, if it weren't for the fact Pasqualino is a manipulative bastard who'll do anything – really anything – to survive. In a way this movie is also a parody of such feel-good movies. Wertmüller peels down the layers of the hero to show that behind all that willpower, all that nobility there's just a rat trying to survive.Like the Nazi Kapo says to Pasqualino, "You're a sub-human creature who'll survive, while we tried to create the master race and are doomed". And yet Giannini, who gives a marvellous performance, never makes his character unlikable. From the first time we see him wearing a dead man's bloodied bandages to fake a wound, to strutting through the streets of Naples like a peacock, to debasing himself before the Kapo in return for food, we're captivated by his performance.If you ever need to remind yourself what a sad, pathetic species we are, watch Pasqualino Settebellezze and marvel how all the lies that hide our true nature are torn apart to reveal our true spirit.

Giancarlo Giannini is an actor whose performances I've always enjoyed, and he first came to my attention as Renaldo Pazzi in the startlingly-underrated 'Hannibal,' in which he nonetheless managed to outshine the likes of Anthony Hopkins, Julianne Moore and Gary Oldman. My search for more of his excellent roles led me all the way back to 1975, in Lina Wertmüller's powerful Holocaust drama/comedy, 'Pasqualino Settebellezze {Seven Beauties}.' Surprisingly, for a foreign title, the film proved quite successful at the 1977 Academy Awards, receiving nominations for Best Foreign Language Film, Best Director (the first such nomination for a female director), a well-deserved Best Actor (Giannini) and Best Original Screenplay.The film follows the exploits of Pasqualino Frafuso, a proud young man from a poor, rather unattractive family. Over the course of his life, Pasqualino has gained a certain level of respect in his home city of Naples. Whilst not particularly brave or dangerous, he possesses enough confidence to convince others that he is, and few people bother him. He carries around a gun for intimidation purposes, but doesn't really know how to use it properly. Thus, despite his less-than-good looks, Pasqualino considers himself a great success, and refuses to allow anybody to tarnish the great reputation that he has garnered himself. When one of his seven sisters becomes a prostitute to make ends meet, he responds violently, his reaction resulting in murder. In order to minimise his punishment, Pasqualino abandons his morals and feigns insanity, before enlisting in the defence force to escape the debilitating mental institution.All his own life, Pasqualino has treasured his sense of pride, but, when faced with death, he finds himself becoming… not quite a coward, but something akin to one. He deteriorates into a pathetic, grovelling, low-life creature, his will to survive outweighing his former notions of respect and family honour. It is not, in any way, a heroic bid for survival; it is painful to watch; we are repulsed; we pity him for the lengths he has gone to. When ordered to randomly select six young members of his own people to be executed, he does so. He puts a bullet in his own friend because he is told to. There are no heroes here; only the raw, brutal facts of reality.'Seven Beauties,' peculiarly for films of its subject matter, is a mixture of comedy and drama, and this gave rise to some of its biggest flaws. At numerous points, the film seems unsure of exactly what it wants to be: the bright, funny sequences are funny; the dark, dramatic sequences are certainly dramatic. However, the two extremes can't seem to comfortably co-exist on the screen, as you'd imagine when dealing with events of this sort. As much as my opinion is destined to be an unpopular one, I thought that Roberto Benigni's 'La Vita è bella {Life is Beautiful} (1997)' did a better job of using comedy to make the events of the Holocaust seem even more tragic.Another point that shouldn't affect my enjoyment of the film – but does – is the fact that 'Seven Beauties' features a selection of the most repulsive women, both morally and visually, in the history of cinema. Giannini, despite referring to himself as ugly at one point, stands as a shining beacon of handsomeness among this crowd, which is not necessarily a compliment. I realise that this was probably a requirement for the film itself to work, but that doesn't make it any easier to look at the television screen. After watching 'Seven Beauties' for the first time, I find myself satisfied, but ultimately feeling as though it has been done better.

The old adage: "He who fights and runs away Lives to fight another day" seems to pretty well summarise Pascalino's attitude to life. He is very much on the run through much of this film. After all he did murder a man who deflowered his sister. But then he believes murder is permissible under some circumstances e.g. when the honour of the family is at stake. As for war, why kill people you do not even know? This and many other questions he keeps asking himself.I happened upon this gem of a film quite unexpectedly. The title meant nothing to me. For the first part of the film I was disarmed by a light comedy, so very Italian, about a "casanova" who had all the ladies swooning. I was enjoying his antics (perhaps learning a thing or two) when suddenly, captured and thrust into the confines of a Nazi prison camp he became a tragic figure indeed as he tried to seduce (using every known technique)the very brutal Commandant, a fearsome woman to be sure.The horrors of war and the terrible decisions which have to be made to save one's own skin becomes the major thrust of this film.It's a thoroughly entertaining anti-war film with some home-spun philosophy about war and life in general which deserves deep thought by those contemplating any type of warfare. The message is just as pertinent today as it was when this film was made nearly 30 years ago.