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Hate your job at a big company? Then you’ll love this!

May 4, 2018 by Daniel

OK, so I was wrong.

After living in Italy for twenty years, I was convinced Italians had no sense of humour.

But reading/listening to our newest Italian ‘Book of the Movie’ easy reader had me laughing out loud!

The 1975 film, Fantozzi, features Ugo Fantozzi, a down-on-his-luck employee of a souless ‘mega-company’.

A combination of self-depreciating satire and absurd slapstick, Ugo’s adventures still seem so relevant to many aspects of Italian life, even forty years later!

As the film begins, poor Ugo has managed to get bricked up in an office toilet during elevator-renovation works, though, of course, none of his colleagues notice he’s gone.

Eighteen days later, his timid wife plucks up the courage to call the company and ask why he hasn’t come home. A search is organised…

Take some time today to read and listen to the sample chapter. The level is B2 (upper-intermediate).

Capitolo 1. Il ragionier Ugo Fantozzi

Listen online: https://soundcloud.com/onlineitalianclub/sets/fantozzi

Un’enorme ditta, la “Megaditta”, riceve una telefonata: è Pina, la brutta moglie del ragionier Fantozzi Ugo, che non torna a casa da 18 giorni. Sul posto di lavoro ci sono alcune sue cose. Un uomo annusa la sciarpa, come un cane, e cerca: arriva a un muro, costruito 20 giorni prima per chiudere un bagno. Si abbatte il muro: ed ecco Fantozzi! Tutti chiedono: “Come sta?”

E lui: “Benissimo. Solo un po’ di appetito…”

Nel suo ufficio i colleghi non lo salutano, mentre la signorina Silvani gli chiede di guardare anche i suoi documenti, prima di andare via con il ragionier Calboni. “Con piacere!” risponde lui, che poi sviene.

La mattina dopo, Fantozzi è a letto. Per essere al lavoro alle 8.30, dopo 16 anni di prove, Fantozzi ora mette la sveglia alle 7.51. Quando suona, ecco Pina con il caffè. Tutto è calcolato in secondi: 5 per svegliarsi, 5 per riprendersi dalla vista della moglie, 2 per il caffè, poi bagno e cucina, dove trova la figlia Mariangela, brutta come una scimmia. Restano 3 minuti per vestirsi, eccetto incidenti… e il laccio di una scarpa si rompe. Fantozzi annuncia: “Salto dal balcone in strada e prendo l’autobus al volo.”

L’autobus arriva pienissimo, alcuni passeggeri si aggrappano alla porta aperta in fondo. Fantozzi si aggrappa all’ultimo e: tira giù lui e tutti gli altri, come legati tra loro, che finiscono in strada e lo attaccano arrabbiati. Fantozzi arriva al lavoro in ambulanza, corre per timbrare il cartellino: sono le 8.29. Tutti tifano per lui, che ci riesce subito prima della campanella, poi sviene.

Glossario

annusa: he sniffs
si abbatte: they knock down
sviene: he faints
riprendersi: to recover
scimmia: monkey
laccio: shoelace
al volo: while it is going
si aggrappano, si aggrappa: they hold on to, he holds on to
timbrare il cartellino: to clock in
tifano: they cheer

Esercizio

Vero o falso?
1. Pina, moglie di Fantozzi, lavora alla Megaditta.
2. Fantozzi è rimasto chiuso in un bagno per 18 giorni.
3. Normalmente Fantozzi va al lavoro in autobus.
4. Tutti i passeggeri dell’autobus finiscono in strada.
5. Alla Megaditta Fantozzi timbra il cartellino in ritardo.

(Download this free sample chapter as a .pdf file)

Enjoyed that?

Then why not take a look at the actual film (in Italian, no subtitles) on Youtube?

The quality of the video and audio in the version I’ve linked to is frankly dreadful.

(If anyone finds a better one, do post the link as a comment on this article…)

But with the help of our text, you should be able to follow what’s going on.

The chapter above covers the first nine minutes of the movie.

Watch it, having read our simplified version, and you’ll see just how well Giovanni (the professional scriptwriter and Italian teacher who prepared our ebook easy reader) has done.

Need help with the rest of the film?

The full version of our easy reader will be available on Monday, at the special launch price of just £5.99.

For that you get nine chapters of simplified text with a glossary and exercise for each.

Plus a link to the free online audio, insights into Italian popular culture, and plenty of laughs!

A lunedì.

P.S.

If you like movies but aren’t into comedy, Giovanni’s eleven other masterpieces are here.

Filed Under: Articles

Comments

  1. Julia Luke says

    May 4, 2018 at 7:00 pm

    All the Fantozzi films are also available to stream (at least in the U.S.) on Amazon Prime. Enjoy!

    • Daniel says

      May 4, 2018 at 9:00 pm

      Thanks Julia! Shame I’m not in the U.S., and don’t have Amazon Prime, so I’ve been watching on a palm-sized screen, but enjoying it anyway!

      Daniel

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