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Rating: "… And Outside it's Snowing!", or How I Disprove the Stereotype.
It's not true at all that autistic people are stupid or brainless; they simply possess a world of their own, mostly filled with moments of fun. In fact, while experiencing their moments, they have fun, yet isolate themselves from the World. This highly successful play, written and directed by the excellent director Vincenzo Salemme, shows us how intelligent a person with this condition can be. Pure pragmatism.
Enzo (Salemme) returns home after 18 years due to the death of his severely ill mother. In her will, the woman wants to keep him and his two brothers united: the almost married Stefano (Carlo Buccirosso) and Cico, the artistic one (Nando Paone), through the effective device (initially misunderstood by Enzo) of not dividing the inheritance into three equal parts. Enzo doesn't remember much about his brother, nor is he aware that the condition has worsened, but he will soon find out. Indeed, Cico first impersonates a funicular passenger (inviting his brother to board), then a police officer asking for "clothes" (documents) and "chicken, relative, and stamp" (stamp, license, and registration), finally taking him to a pizzeria where he prepares the famous dish without mozzarella, oil, and tomato (to which Enzo will exclaim, playing along: "Listen, are you going to make this pizza or not, you have nothing" and will be silenced by Stefano). The story continues in the following days, irritating the two 'normal' brothers. They care a lot for him, but one has marital commitments and the other business and financial. Enzo, in fact, owes 12 million lire in debts accumulated from illegal horse betting, 2 of which are only supposed, as they were bet by Cico posing as his brother. However, he wins 20 million with that bet, demonstrating the goodness and intelligence (already previously shown in some of his discussions) of our problematic protagonist who…
Hides a terrible secret, revealed in an involuntary confession: "Mom suffered, and I gave her morphine… morphine, a lot of morphine, so mom feels good and doesn't suffer anymore…". Yes, he practiced euthanasia on his mother, obviously with good intentions. It's hard to understand, however, the intentions of a person considered abnormal, who is promptly condemned for the act. Our hero is partly pitied, partly arouses increasingly strong concerns (what if he is dangerous??!), a theory that seems confirmed when Cico fires a real shot into the air. Later the notary (Maurizio Casagrande) is called for financial verification, and it's discovered that Stefano's future wife is actually a whore, a "call girl", who has cuckolded him countless times. Guess who finds out this bitter truth? Needless to say. The end arrives, the fateful day that should confine the man shaped by our spectators' emotions to a clinic, which he resignedly accepts, provided the three have one last toast, bitter yet almost pleasant, with a very good drink, which Cico knows will keep them united forever, finally…
Okay, a tear-jerking finale, compensated by Paone's last hilarious lines conveying the idea: "We will be forever in your hearts, don't worry, we will not abandon you."
Salemme's masterpiece, no doubt about it. A tragicomic play that skillfully blends amusing moments to burst into laughter (the moment when Enzo asks Cico to check if Stefano is coming, full of entertaining misunderstandings) and grotesque scenes inviting reflection with the stratagem of striking (Cico's at times angry reactions towards Stefano). The protagonist's cry "I want the puree", which may seem so trivial, sums up all the discomfort he lives in: misunderstood, never satisfied with what he does, wishing to live well and always have his puree. The "noir" label isn't out of place, as it's a work that tells of today's social situations, with an ability that makes everything seem simple and the story enjoyable. However, I believe the irony is just a pretext that conceals the hard-to-understand meanings of the story: never abandon an autistic person (or people with other issues), they absolutely need you, they must have certainties and comfort while living in their own world, they must be supported and accommodated (but not too much) in what they decide to do. Cico's action of making his brothers drink morphine perfectly embodies this concept. But it seems appropriate to analyze the excellent work done by the actors, very few but good:
Vincenzo Salemme: here he is, the apparent indifferent, the well-dressed snob who has to pay off horse betting debts. Definitely a second protagonist, embodying the concept "I realized too late, I should have done it sooner" naturally directed towards his brother. Excellent performance, routine by now for the versatile actor and author of this multifaceted theatrical and human delight. Doesn't it affect you to see a director acting in his own work?
Carlo Buccirosso: he has been through all sorts of situations. A good and charismatic man, very patient, who had to endure the dictatorship of a mother-in-law who didn't want him to talk on the phone with her daughter, claiming he was a sexual maniac (meanwhile, with the password "Pippo Baudo has long hair" everything was allowed!). In excellent form, he's very realistic when he loses his temper and gets angry.
Nando Paone: absolute standing ovation for him. An Oscar-winning performance allowed us to understand autism's issue, which should not be overlooked. He managed to create a character with a high dose of charisma, was dynamic and highly versatile, knew how to make people laugh and cry, perfectly assumed the role of the troubled. 10 with honors.
Maurizio Casagrande: his role as the notary was marginal, and I have to admit I didn't like it much. This doesn't detract, however, from his exceptional talent, as seen in other comedies by Salemme.
Naturally, my appeal to you is this: watch it multiple times (initially, one is superficial).
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