Mambo Italiano

Amazon.com

Set in the Little Italy neighborhood of Montreal, Mambo Italiano is a fresh and enjoyable take on gay relationships. After reconnecting with an estranged childhood friend, Angelo (Luke Kirby) discovers that he and Nino (Peter Miller) have more in common than just their Italian heritage and suffocating families. After they move in together, Angelo finds that he can't stand being in the closet any longer--but Nino, who's a cop and much more attached to passing as straight, resists. After Angelo tells his parents (Ginette Reno and Paul Sorvino), their lives explode and Angelo discovers that coming out may cost him everything he held dear. The emphasis on ethnic humor threatens to turn Mambo Italiano into My Big Gay Italian Wedding, but the clever writing, sprightly performances, and inventive direction keep the movie consistently unpredictable and funny. Also featuring Claudia Ferri as Angelo's neurotic sister. --Bret Fetzer

Description

In the comic flavor of My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Maria and Gino's Italian world is shattered when their son decides to get a place of his own. They are relieved when Angelo's childhood buddy Nino decides to move in with their son. However, their relief is short-lived when they find out that Nino and Angelo are more than just roommates—they're lovers! And then the fun really begins! Stars Paul Sorvino (Bulworth), Luke Kirby (Halloween: The Resurrection).

Customer Reviews:

Mambo Infuriato.......2007-05-17

A VERY good movie for any ethnicity. The humor and true to life culture kept the integrity of this movie together. Very well done.

amoung my favorite gay films.......2007-05-07

If you haven't seen this film yet then you must buy it to see it for the first time. If you've already seen it then you need to buy it so you will always have it on hand when you need a real pick me up. Mambo Italiano is on of the best and most endearing gay films I have ever seen. I highly recommended movie. I don't know anyone who didn't fully enjoy the characters, the story and the humor of this wonderful coming of age and coming out story.

Pure Entertainment.......2007-04-15

"Mambo Italiano"

Pure Entertainment

Amos Lassen and Cinema Pride

In "Mambo Italiano" Angelo Barberini is the weird son of Italian immigrants, Gino and Maria who find themselves in Canada instead of the United States. Angelo gives his parents a shock when he decides to move out of the house, something most Italian children do only after they are married. But that is a small shock compared to the one he gives them when he tells them that he is gay. His boyfriend, a policeman, Nino Paventi is not so ready to swing open his closet door; especially since his mother is such a busybody. Life would be so easy for the guys if the parents were not involved. Angelo's go almost crazy when he comes out. This is a zany comedy complete with oddball characters, witty dialog and lots of humor.
"Mambo Italiano" is a very clever little film. However in order to enjoy the film for what it is, you must overlook the stereotypical representations of Italians as pictured here. Somehow the makers of the film did not mention nor show that Italians give the film all of its charm and beauty.
The characters and situations shown in the movie are credible and very funny but they cannot be accepted for Italians as a whole. The stereotypical representations of Italians are just that--stereotypical representations and should not be interpreted to be anything more than that. In the movie they are not offensive but rather delightful. Angelo (Luke Kirby) as just enough humor but more than enough heart to make his character believable. The movie focuses on his journey of self discovery in relation to his family, to his partner and to his own self and sexuality.
The end of the film leaves you with a good feeling. Sometimes we need a movie in which everything turns out alright in the end to remind us how much fun life can really be.
Here is the story of gay guys who have repressive families and how the guys face the pressures of coming out. All is depicted for the sake of a laugh or two and it works. With the stereotypical portrayals of an ethnic group in the wrong place at the wrong time, we indeed get something to laugh about. The script is well written, the editing is excellent and the actors and the director hit all the right angles.
Angelo's trails and tribulations are hilarious as he strives to find that inner voice as a writer while everything around him is both earthbound and mundane. The issue of gayness is dealt with by tactfulness and humility--these are rare qualities to find in movies that are supposedly pro-gay. Angelo is a man who likes men but he is also a man who feels pain. He loves and he has desires and he is not just a stereotype. He struggles with his identity just as his partner does--just as we all do.
The movie has many more strengths than limitations. It has moments of humor and it has some very dark moments but all in all it chooses to tell a story with humor and in that it is highly successful.

A good laugh for a good evening.......2007-03-26

This movie will not change the world or alter the way you view life. It will give you a lot of laughs, well-delivered. For the romantic in all of us, this movie delivers.

Feel-good and meaningful.......2007-01-12

I just really loved it. Very funny. I mean, not actual "laughing out loud" funny, but the kind of funny where you have a huge smile on your face throughout the whole movie. The writing is very good. Such clever writing. Everything is right to the point. That's also a compliment to director, Émile Gaudreault. The pace is so excellently directed that you lose all sense of time. I just loved the plot. It wasn't terribly predictable. Like, I loved how our two lovers don't get together in the end. THAT would have made it trite.

A point that I'm really glad the movie discussed is the "man who is attracted to and wants to be with other men, but not interested in being honest about his life with anyone but his lover." That's what Nino is. Angelo is much more interested in not living a lie, and that's who we come to respect in the movie. It's clear that Nino is not interested in self-dignity, and that's who we feel sorry for.

I also really loved how we see a realistic and detailed view of the process Angelo's parents go through in learning to accept there son. Gay children should show this movie to their parents if they're having trouble accepting their gay children.

The acting is also fabulous. You have to be a very skilled actor to purposefully play a stereotype and at the same time, believe in your character so much that you make this character a real, truthful person that your audience can actually relate to. Every actor does that.

A light, feel-good movie, is what it is. As far as gay-themed movies go, my other recommendations are Big Eden, Come Undone, and Latter Days; although, this stands in a category of quality all on it's on.

Average customer rating:

Mambo Italiano (Full Screen)
Director: Émile Gaudreault , Ginette Reno , Paul Sorvino , and Mary Walsh
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000NGM4AA

Product Description

The son of Italian immigrants to Canada struggles to find the best way to reveal to his parents that he's gay.

Average customer rating:

Funny! I can relate to this story.
Worth watching...

Mambo Italiano
Starring: Luke Kirby , Ginette Reno , Paul Sorvino , Mary Walsh , and Peter Miller
Director: Émile Gaudreault
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

ASIN: B0007WJ25U

Product Description

Angelo Barberini is the oddball son of Italian immigrants Gino and Maria, who inadvertently ended up in Canada rather than the States. Angelo shocks his parents by moving out on his own without getting married, and shocks them further still when he reveals that he's gay. But his boyfriend, policeman Nino Paventi isn't as ready to come out of the closet -- especially not to his busybody mother, Lina.

Customer Reviews:

Funny! I can relate to this story........2007-03-19

Very funny movie. Its also heart warming.
It worth owning and makes a nice party movie (even in mixed company).

Worth watching..........2005-12-30

Entertaining and funny familial dysfunction, Italian style.

Average customer rating:

Mambo Italiano

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video
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