“My Friends”

“Amici Miei” (“My Friends”, in English) is an Italian cult comedy-drama movie – the first of a trilogy – that was first showed in movie theatres in August 10, 1975. Shot in Florence, the movie tells the adventures of four middle-aged friends who face disappointments and sorrows with jokes and pranks, as good Tuscan people.
Occasionally they leave their jobs and worries to wander around the city, as Peter Pans who refuse to grow up. Their adventures occur in different places all around the city: the “La Nazione”1 headquarter; L’Australiano café, right behind Santa Croce; Necchi’s café, former Negroni Café in Via Renai; the Salviatino Institute at the foot of the hills of Fiesole; Santa Maria Novella train station; Santo Spirito church and so on and so forth.
What is peculiar of this movie is that those places are out of the usual tourist circuit. Those places are full of life.
The spirit of sound irresponsibility and apparent carefree attitude that the director Monicelli skillfully knew how to convey, are what made the movie unique. Its most peculiar characteristic are its famous jokes and sketches, the “supercazzole”, known by all generations in Florence and in the rest of Italy.
The movie, its director and the four protagonists received the David di Donatello award, the Nastro d’Argento award and the Golden Lion.
If you have some knowledge of Italian, we strongly suggest you to watch “My Friends”.
“Io restai a chiedermi se l’imbecille ero io, che la vita la pigliavo tutta come un gioco, o se invece era lui che la pigliava come una condanna ai lavori forzati; o se lo eravamo tutti e due”, quote by Perozzi, one of the protagonist.

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