Eccezzziunale... veramente

Three separate stories, three separate fans. Donato supports Milan, Tirzan supports Inter, Franco supports Juventus. All three are played by the same actor, and each spends a day in his own city and the logic of his own neighbourhood. Carlo Vanzina directed. Diego Abatantuono plays all three roles. The film's language holds a particular place in Italy: Abatantuono's mixed slang, southern in origin and spoken in the Milan suburbs, spread from here and its lines entered everyday speech. The humour rests entirely on the tribal logic of football support: the rival team, the rival neighbourhood, and young men who threaten constantly and do nothing. It became a cult item in Italy and counts as one of the emblems of the popular comedy wave of the early eighties. A sequel followed. It is almost unknown outside Italy, because the humour depends completely on language and period context. Who it is for: viewers curious about Italian popular comedy and football culture. Who it is not for: anyone watching with subtitles; the joke is the slang itself and it does not travel.