Tales of Ordinary Madness (1981)

Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

It's a sad and melancholic story about a promising writer, CHARLES SERKING (played by Ben Gazzara), who has a terrible addiction to alcoholism. His life is a constant adventure through the borders of sanity, but he never cares when he's in the end of the line, crossing the edge of madness. He lives in a permanent rush for alcohol and sex, to satisfy his instinct. When he meets a young and beautiful prostitute – beautiful as an angel in his words – called CASS (Ornella Muti) his life won't change, because she's also a lost soul, a girl which injuries herself! It's in this mood of extreme depression and madness that this story goes until a tragic end. But then, comes redemption and a new beginning, with a new angel...

After the lecture of a poem to a group of bored students, the alcoholic and sex addicted poet Charles Serking (Ben Gazzara) meets a young girl in the backstage and caresses her breasts. Then he travels to Los Angeles, and has kinky sex with bizarre women. When Charles meets the gorgeous self-destructive prostitute Cass (Ornella Muti) in a bar, he finds his soul mate and falls in love for her.Marco Ferreri is one of the weirdest directors that I know, and this "Storie di Ordinaria Follia" gives a perfect theme for him to make a good movie about of two self-destructive souls. I do not know the work of the underground poet Charles Bukowski, and actually I just know a little about his biography based on the movie "Factotum" that I hated. But in "Storie di Ordinaria Follia", Ornella Muti is on the top of her awesome beauty and her performance in the role of a tormented character is impressive. Ben Gazzara has also a stunning performance in the role of Charles Serking, a man near to madness that survives drinking booze and having dirty sex. However, this movie is only recommended for very specific audiences. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Crônicas de um Amor Louco" ("Chronicles of a Crazy Love")

Although not done by David, it would do him proud! Who would have thought the land of oranges and sunshine could produce such an interesting parade of weird and pathetic characters. The juxtaposition of these "lost angels" lives with the pristine, sunlight beaches just makes us all the more sympathetic. All is not well in the land of dreams and this film puts its glaring spotlight on it. This film could have easily have been five ordinary films. Ornella Muti perfectly does Ingrid Bergman and Isabella Rosilini as the object of desire on the outside and the bucket of worms on the inside. There is no real "supporting" cast: They are the movie!

Charles Bukowski is one of the most important men to have ever lived. His work is of the ages and I would put thousands of his passages up against the work of all those writers generally considered great. What all that has to do with this movie is not very much. As a film it falls short of the mark as it wanders like a drunk through the streets trying to give us a snapshot of sorts, a month in the life of the great Charles Bukowski. As for reality, I am sure that the Buk was pretty much drunk all the time and wasted lots of time with dirty women but that was his business. I am just glad that he put in some heavy time at the typewriter. I am also grateful for this film as it provides another document, a bit of proof that Charles Bukowski was real. Ben Gazarra does a nice job painting this particular picture of Chuck but it is not a performance that would alone make this a rental for the upcoming acting students. For a more realistic approach check our Mickey Rourke in Barfly. There is a very beautiful Italian actress (Ornella Muti) in this picture who plays the main love interest. She is worth the price of rental or even a bloated DVD purchase. I doubt that Bukowski ever had a girl this beautiful but that's the movies for ya.