Mambo

1996. MAMBO (1955-Italy). With SILVANA MANGANO, MICHAEL RENNIE, VITTORIO GASSMAN, SHELLEY WINTERS, KATHERINE DUNHAM, EDUARDO CIANELLI. A stirring tale of passion and desire, and the price one must pay to realize one’s ambitions. The star is sexy Silvana Mangano, who was among Italy’s top movie actresses during the 1950s. She is most alluring in the role of Giovanna, a starry-eyed Venetian beauty who despises the shabby neighborhood in which she lives. Giovanna toils as a lowly salesgirl while dreaming of escaping her background and finding fortune and celebrity. Three very different individuals enter into her life and tear at her feelings. First there is Mario, her boyfriend. He is a shiftless black marketeer who always is on the lookout for easy money and who lately has been attempting to find work as croupier. Mario will callously lie to Giovanna out of jealousy, as he attempts to keep her in her place and squelch her ambition, Then comes the wealthy and charming Count Enrico, who lusts after Giovanna. When Enrico looks at her, she feels a “shivering thrill.” Yet Giovanna is destined to learn that the count’s life is not as glamÂorous as it seems. Finally there is Tony, the sharp-tongued female business manager of a touring dance troupe. Tony was never able to realize her own ambition to become a performer. She obsesÂsively intends to play the role of Svengali and mold Giovanna into a star dancer and singer. Interestingly, there is a hint of sexual desire on Tony’s part in the manner in which she longingly stares at Giovanna. As she interacts with this trio, Giovanna finds that her emotions are tugged in every which direction. The result is a harrowing and rousing drama, which also features some strikÂing on-location filming in Venice and Rome. 93 minutes. Drama