User Reviews

(Spoilers) Ever popular in Naples but hardly known elsewhere is the Neapolitan actor Mario Merola, who starred in many routine genre pieces such as this one. All had a ready-made local audience. I never really liked him and have always found him a tedious and obnoxious screen presence. Here he plays Gennaro, a seller of octopus broth! Everyone in the family has some kind of little job to help and try to make ends meet for the poor family. Gennaro would like to get a license needed to be a roving retailer but there are payoffs on sales to be made to Camorra members who are not very nice. His wife Carmela pays, but he rebels against the practice. Gennaro locks heads with the head Camorra boss. The criminals injure him and he winds up in jail. Carmela says she is guilty, in order to save her husband, who gets ticked off with the woman, thinking she is unfaithful. They all go to the Shrine of Montevergine and things are set aright. The whole piece is a bit of "commedia dell'arte," thoroughly unsophisticated, and directed by Alfredo Brescia in a routine manner.