Robbing Mussolini (Rapiniamo il Duce) is an Italian language film about a wartime weapon thief/businessman Isola (played by Pietro Castellitto) who curates a plan to rob the grand treasure of Italian fascist ruler Benito Mussolini with a help of a misfit team. The film has a running time of one hour and thirty minutes and is written and directed by Renato De Maria.
The cast of the film includes Matilde De Angelis as Yvonne, Tommaso Ragno as Marcello, Alberto Astorri as Molotov, Marcello Macchia as Giovanni Fabbri, Coco Rebecca Edogamhe as Hessa, Filippo Timi as Borsalino, Isabella Ferrari as Nora Cavalieri. Although the film is primarily in Italian, it is available to stream with English subtitles.
-Robbing Mussolini Review Contains No Spoilers-
The film starts with an illegal weapon deal initiated by Isola, the son of a former resistance martyred, who has been raised to believe that thieves are better than heroes as they often survive the game. He trades the automatic weapons along with heavy explosives with a few members of the resistance movement and is soon interrupted by a raid from the fascists.
Isola has a team of trustee associates cum family, including a like-minded sharp shooter Marcello and a professional code breaker played by Luigi Fedele. The wartime entrepreneur also has a love interest Yvonne, who is close to Mussolini’s top hierarchical man Borsalino.
After the bust from the fascist’s watchdogs, Isola learns about the treasure of Mussolini that is being shifted to Switzerland. He immediately hatches a plan to steal from the big stealer, and strike a big blow to the dictatorial leaders. All he needs is a team of misfits that are ready to risk everything, for a near-impossible heist.
The plot of Renato De Maria’s new heist film Robbing Mussolini((Rapiniamo il Duce) is more intriguing than its execution. The film lacks the enthralling element of a heist flick and mostly relies on tried and tested methods. The combination of these doesn’t help the plain course of events.
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The film attempts to paint a grand picture of an impossible heist against the backdrop of World War 2 and ultimately becomes highly predictable. Even the trademark character death in the heist flick fails to generate any emotional response and prevents any form of connection with the final payoff.
The lacklustre element is further aided by the performance of the protagonist. Which is layered with an unconvincing arch and seemingly flat humour. The role of Isola seems to be dwindling along the moral compass but magically finds a direction in the end. All in all the process is doomed right from the very start.
Robbing Mussolini Final Thoughts
I wish the film was as interesting as the trailer, but the end result was truly disappointing. The true-ish story had all the ingredients to shine and establish its mark with a perfect setup. However, the ingathering screenplay prevents the film from lifting off and keeps all the intrigue out of everyone’s reach. Furthermore, you can still watch the film if you love the combination of history and heist.
You can stream the hesit-centric film on Netflix. Let us know how you resonated with the film it in the comment section below.
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