I really enjoyed the balance of information and comedy in this film. The director was clearly trying to both make apparent and also to help break down the stereotypes about the different regions of Italy by poking fun at them and showing why they should not be taken too seriously. This can be seen perfectly through the character of Alberto Colombo. When he is shipped off to Castellabate he brings with him all the prejudice he holds against southern Italy. All of his and his wife’s assumptions and actions before he leaves, such as her giving Alberto a bulletproof, are obviously hyperbolized for comedic effect, but the real comedy comes in the irony that Castellabate is nothing like the horrible image he has in his head. It doesn’t help that the circumstances in which he arrives at Castellabate are nothing short of terrible and that there are conveniently placed things like fireworks and gunpowder to make Alberto think he’s living in a terrorist cell. The director then turns Alberto’s comedic ignorance and overthinking into a lesson for all viewers of the movie. Once Alberto meets his coworkers and begins to make an effort to assimilate, he realizes that the stereotypes that Northerners put on Southerners are nowhere near true. Alberto’s realizations and coming-to’s in turn become the audience’s. By revealing that the stereotypes are untrue, the director is educating the audience. Breaking these stereotypes in a comedic and humorous way also gives the audience a better way to receive the message. If the director were to come out immediately and just say that the stereotypes are false, it would be met with lots of pushback and most likely complete disregard. This is because people are stubborn and will not appreciate being told they are wrong to their faces. That is the genius of cloaking the message in humor. By giving people a reason to laugh, they are automatically associating the stereotypes that they may hold with jokes and mockery. This movie really showed me the disparity in culture between the North and the South while also showing me that it is not bad that they are different.
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