We will not remember who Paolo Villaggio is and what he did in cinema, theater and so on. We are not even here to write the testimonies of those who knew him. Because there are miles of words about him on sites and social. In addition, we invite you to read them all, also because some of them would be at the center of some joke of the Genoese actor.

However, we greet him in our own way with a 1980 comedy less well known to the public than many other works. A film that takes some structures from the classics comedy of Italian theater and tires to be a corrosive satire of Italy. In addition, we do not say of Italy of the time because this vision of society would be ok still today. A film that has an outstanding cast, placed in the right place, an acute director, who with the Villaggio has created several great works. So to name one: "Fantozzi".
Luciano Salce who also writes the script continues the partnership with Villaggio trying to resume the ideas of "Il ... Belpaese" and that is, as said, an irony on everyday reality. And we immediately say that the cue is great, the Salce/Villaggio's combo promises great things but at the end this film does not exploit its full potential while losing itself in the second part and giving us a Villaggio that slowly slides, unfortunately, in a character like Fantozzi.
We have nothing against Rag.Fantozzi, for us it is a great saga, or at least we have nothing against him of the first three movies (the rest instead claim revenge). However, it’s a character that in the end has at least partially obscured the art of the Villaggio that repeated it several times sometimes in really bad comedies.
We said we did not talk about Villaggio’s career and we return to "Rag. Arturo De Fanti bancario-precario" whose main character could have a different development, although it is always an accountant (ragioniere) and although we find the group of the main actors of the Fantozzi saga: Anna Mazzamauro, Gigi Reder, Ugo Bologna, Paolo Paoloni, which certainly do not need presentations. Along with them are an always-elegant Catherine Spaak, the beautiful Anna Maria Rizzoli and a surprising Enrica Bonaccorti, for those whom have known her on TV in the eighties as a national-popular anchor.

History has an almost theatrical structure and takes to the extreme a family situation. Rag.Arturo De Fanti (Villaggio Of course) is married with Elena (Catherine Spaak), and to their dependencies there is the maid Esmeralda an ironic and provocative Enrica Bonaccorti that also shows a couple of tits nothing bad. De Fanti's house counts are exorbitant and to overcome the problem Arturo manages to convince his wife to bring to home as an au pair Vanna (Anna Maria Rizzoli) who is actually his lover. However, even her contribution is not enough. Then comes Willy (Gigi Reder), Elena's lover, who looks like an entrepreneur but actually runs only a mediocre gym. However, it does not end here because arrives the countess Selvaggia Antigori, Willy's wife, played by the usual great Anna Mazzamauro, her jealous lover Paolo Paoloni, who tries to kill Willy and finally Libero Catena (Carlo Giuffrè) who flees from a prison where he became gay.
Money problems, affair problems between bed, exchanges, and double-way jokes. As a connection, there are moments that stigmatize the violence of society (generally mugging or robbery) or moments with Ugo Bologna, bank director and chief of De Fanti who recalls the duty, as always, the Villaggio’s character. Narrative pearl is the introduction of characters on the still image to give a sense of epic and to remember "The good, the bad and the ugly”

However, this allegory only works for just over half the film. There are many funny moments with several good gags. The effervescence of Anna Maria Rizzoli and Enrica Bonaccorti, balance well the elegance of Catherine Spaak but around the fiftieth minute, the story becomes monotonous and the new characters bring nothing new to the story. In short, the story remains on what we have already seen, and the way of the happy ending overwhelms the good satire seen so far.
We say that "Rag.Arturo De Fanti bancario - precario" is a film that should last less. Not as short as a working voucher, but with ten minutes less we would have a very good comedy good (and more than eighties) today.