Big Deal on Madonna Street - Movies on Google Play

Big Deal on Madonna Street

1960 • 102 minutes
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About this movie

Big Deal on Madonna Street is a 1958 Italian comedy caper film directed by Mario Monicelli and considered to be among the masterpieces of Italian cinema. Its original Italian title literally translates as "the usual unknown ones", which is roughly equivalent to the English phrase "the usual suspects". The name of the Roman street in the English title is a slight mistranslation, as the Italian name of the fictional Roman street on which the midnight burglary in the film takes place is the Via delle Madonne rather than "Madonna Street". Compounding the confusion is the fact that the real Roman street on which the scene was filmed is the Via delle tre cannelle, rather than the Via delle tre Madonne.
The film is a comedy about a group of small-time thieves and ne'er-do-wells who bungle an attempt to burgle a pawn shop in Rome. The five hapless would-be burglars are played by Vittorio Gassman, Renato Salvatori, Carlo Pisacane, Tiberio Murgia and Marcello Mastroianni. The careers of both Gassman and Mastroianni were considerably helped by the success of the film—Gassman in particular, since before this point he was not deemed suitable for comedic roles.