Magistrate Del Russo presides over four cases brough before him during a period of one day. “Adultery in 16mm” focus on Elena, who brings her salesman husband to court on charges of abandonment, where he springs surprise evidence involving her affair with her lawyer. In “The Priest and the Prostitute,” Don Michele, a young priest, is charged with wrecking a pool room. He claims he was robbed by Anna, a prostitute, and beaten by her pimp. In “Indecent Exposure,” Meniconi is a man arrested for indecent exposure who claims he was swimming in the nude and his clothes where stolen. The last case “Lustful Lieutenant,” involves Gloriana, a middle-aged prostitute, who’s brought before Del Russo on charges of soliciting, and who apparently knew Del Russo from a time years ago. —IMDb.com
Steno (true name Stefano Vanzina) was born in Rome on 19 January 1917. While still at university he enrolled at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia and began contributing to the satirical journal “Marc’Aurelio”. After graduating in law in 1939, he devoted himself to scriptwriting and by 1948 had written some thirty scripts, starting with films for actor Erminio Macario. The first was “Imputato alzatevi!” (1939) by Mario Mattoli. He made his directing debut in 1949 in collaboration with Mario Monicelli on “Fame and the Devil (Al diavolo la celebrità)”. They went on to direct another seven films together, including the enormously successful “Cops and Robbers (Guardie e ladri)” (1951) with Totò and Aldo Fabrizi.
“Toto in Color (Totò a colori)” (1952) marked Steno’s first step in a successful career as a director on his own. Some of the most memorable films from this period were: “Un americano a Roma” (1954); “Piccola posta” (1955), featuring a splendid double act from Sordi and… read more
