A delightfully barbed, bittersweet parable, Il Sorpasso sees right through the "Great Italian Miracle" - the dazzling decades in which Italy rose from the ashes of WWII in an apparent economical and moral renovation. Risi's razor-sharp script follows Bruno (Gassman, rarely better), thirty-something, divorced, happy-go-lucky deadbeat - like a Mediterranean Jeff Lebowski - drawing shy student Roberto (Trintignant in a subtle, understated performance) with him in an epicurean journey with unpredictable consequences.
Bruno is a magnet: a charismatic, good-natured casanova, instantly likable in spite of his many flaws (crass, unreliable, amoral), in a few hours he bulldozes through the younger man's existence, and Roberto is drawn to his lifestyle like a moth to a flame.
A deconstruction of the mentor trope and of the Bildungsroman/on the road/buddy movie genres, Il Sorpasso seemingly toys with a sunny "seize the day" lesson, only to take in its last act a turn which is at first melancholic - in a visit to Roberto's relatives, Bruno sees right through their secrets, which he casually reveals to his oblivious friend - and then unapologetically dark.
To careful viewers, though, the movie shows its claws long before that - even throwaway moments have bite, like Bruno on the beach hitting on an attractive girl who turns out to be his rarely seen and now surprisingly "all grown up" daughter (a radiant Catherine Spaak).
Il Sorpasso manages to capture both the exhilaration of the feast and the humiliation of the following hangover, often in the same scene and sometimes - courtesy of the magnificent Gassman/Trintignant duo - in the very same instant.
9/10
Bruno is a magnet: a charismatic, good-natured casanova, instantly likable in spite of his many flaws (crass, unreliable, amoral), in a few hours he bulldozes through the younger man's existence, and Roberto is drawn to his lifestyle like a moth to a flame.
A deconstruction of the mentor trope and of the Bildungsroman/on the road/buddy movie genres, Il Sorpasso seemingly toys with a sunny "seize the day" lesson, only to take in its last act a turn which is at first melancholic - in a visit to Roberto's relatives, Bruno sees right through their secrets, which he casually reveals to his oblivious friend - and then unapologetically dark.
To careful viewers, though, the movie shows its claws long before that - even throwaway moments have bite, like Bruno on the beach hitting on an attractive girl who turns out to be his rarely seen and now surprisingly "all grown up" daughter (a radiant Catherine Spaak).
Il Sorpasso manages to capture both the exhilaration of the feast and the humiliation of the following hangover, often in the same scene and sometimes - courtesy of the magnificent Gassman/Trintignant duo - in the very same instant.
9/10