Benur - Un gladiatore in affitto (2013)
Italian comedy about casual work
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This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.
Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction
A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."
Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.
This story is about a narrow-minded, loud-mouthed and stubborn Italian man, Sergio, who works as a tourist-attraction at the Colusseum, where he dresses up as a gladiator, and lets people take their photo with him. He used to be a relatively successful stuntman, and allegedly had a small part in the Hollywood classic, Ben-Hur. But as he grew older, there were no more stunt-jobs for him, so he has to make a living doing a job he doesn't like.He lives with his sister, Maria, who has a job as a phone-sex operator, and frequently has dirty conversations with strange men on the phone, which really annoys Sergio, as he can't get any sleep with her constant moaning and groaning during the night.But one day both their lives are completely changed, when they agree to host the Belorussian immigrant, Milan, who is a very talented worker, and he agrees to take on all sorts of odd-jobs to get by, including dressing up as a gladiator and standing in front of the Colusseum, so Sergio can take some time off, and do things he likes doing instead.Along the way, there are a lot of funny and touching moments, and you either laugh or cry all the way throughout, right up until the anti-climatic ending, which looks very out of context with the rest of the film - studio tampering perhaps? Overall, a very nice movie with a lot of good moments - if there ever would be a Hollywood remake, I'm thinking James Caan as Sergio and Richard Jenkins as Milan would be great!