Il Sorpasso (Criterion Collection)

The ultimate Italian road comedy, IL SORPASSO stars the unlikely pair of Vittorio Gassman (BIG DEAL ON MADONNA STREET) and Jean-Louis Trintignant (Z) as, respectively, a waggish, free-wheeling bachelor and the bookish law student he takes on a madcap trip from Rome to rural Southern Italy. An unpredictable journey that careers from slapstick to tragedy, this film, directed by Dino Risi (the original SCENT OF a WOMAN), is a wildly entertaining commentary on the pleasures and consequences of the good life. A holy grail of commedia all'italiana, IL SORPASSO is so fresh and exciting that one can easily see why it has long been adored in Italy.