I would defy anyone who has seen this movie to forget it, whether they liked it or not.
I saw it years ago and two scenes in particular stayed with me. The first is the lecture alcoholic poet and street philosopher, Charles Serking (Ben Gazara) gives at the beginning of the film on the meaning of style where he makes observations such as, " I have seen dogs with more style than men", and " I have met more men in jail with style than men out of jail", and so on.
The other is the wince-inducing scene where Ornella Muti passes the safety pin from hell through both cheeks – she does it for real, outdoing even David Blaine for shock effect.
"Tales of Ordinary Madness" is a dangerous movie. It weaves along the line between the acceptable and the unacceptable. A scene early in the film where Serking flirts backstage with either a very young girl or a very small woman is worrying – the film revels in its brinkmanship.
The film follows the encounters, mainly sexual, of Serking in the sleazier parts of Los Angeles. Self indulgent, rarely without a bottle in his hand, but also burnt out by life, Serking wears his pain on his sleeve. We find that although he is not without compassion, he has a tendency towards self-destruction. However, when he meets Cass (Ornella Muti), a beautiful prostitute, he learns what self-destruction is all about.
Although Serking's life starts to look up – he actually receives a lucrative offer from a publishing house – he commits possibly his most self-destructive act when he falls in love with Cass with inevitable tragic results. After he reaches rock-bottom, the film ends as he meets another young woman, rekindling his love of poetry.
I'm surprised that some reviewers feel that the leads were miscast. I think they are close to perfect. Ben Gazara is particularly effective as Serking, partly because he brings with him that edginess he brought to every role he played.
Ornella Muti has been accused of being too beautiful. She is a big contrast to the more life-beaten characters in this film, but surely that is also why she is so effective, and that safety pin scene really establishes her character.
Based on stories by Charles Bukowski, Italian director, Marco Ferreri has tied them together seamlessly. Like Altman's "Short Cuts", made from some of Raymond Carver's stories also set in L.A., the format works because stories from the same hand, although treated separately, have a natural link through common themes and the author's worldview.
"Tales of Ordinary Madness" is a challenging work, and a polarising one. I can't say I loved it, but then again I have never forgotten it – it is an experience, and a raw one at that.
I saw it years ago and two scenes in particular stayed with me. The first is the lecture alcoholic poet and street philosopher, Charles Serking (Ben Gazara) gives at the beginning of the film on the meaning of style where he makes observations such as, " I have seen dogs with more style than men", and " I have met more men in jail with style than men out of jail", and so on.
The other is the wince-inducing scene where Ornella Muti passes the safety pin from hell through both cheeks – she does it for real, outdoing even David Blaine for shock effect.
"Tales of Ordinary Madness" is a dangerous movie. It weaves along the line between the acceptable and the unacceptable. A scene early in the film where Serking flirts backstage with either a very young girl or a very small woman is worrying – the film revels in its brinkmanship.
The film follows the encounters, mainly sexual, of Serking in the sleazier parts of Los Angeles. Self indulgent, rarely without a bottle in his hand, but also burnt out by life, Serking wears his pain on his sleeve. We find that although he is not without compassion, he has a tendency towards self-destruction. However, when he meets Cass (Ornella Muti), a beautiful prostitute, he learns what self-destruction is all about.
Although Serking's life starts to look up – he actually receives a lucrative offer from a publishing house – he commits possibly his most self-destructive act when he falls in love with Cass with inevitable tragic results. After he reaches rock-bottom, the film ends as he meets another young woman, rekindling his love of poetry.
I'm surprised that some reviewers feel that the leads were miscast. I think they are close to perfect. Ben Gazara is particularly effective as Serking, partly because he brings with him that edginess he brought to every role he played.
Ornella Muti has been accused of being too beautiful. She is a big contrast to the more life-beaten characters in this film, but surely that is also why she is so effective, and that safety pin scene really establishes her character.
Based on stories by Charles Bukowski, Italian director, Marco Ferreri has tied them together seamlessly. Like Altman's "Short Cuts", made from some of Raymond Carver's stories also set in L.A., the format works because stories from the same hand, although treated separately, have a natural link through common themes and the author's worldview.
"Tales of Ordinary Madness" is a challenging work, and a polarising one. I can't say I loved it, but then again I have never forgotten it – it is an experience, and a raw one at that.