The Treasure of San Gennaro (1966)

"You don't love me anymore. If you did, you'd give me a slap in the face.", 30 April 2017

A group of American thieves arrives in Napoli with intentions of stealing the famed treasure of San Gennaro. Once they get the blessing of the local boss, Don Vincenzo (Toto), they approach local talent for assistance with the job - starting with a thief named Dudu (Nino Manfredi). Planning hits a snag, however, when Dudu learns of the intended target. He cannot possibly steal from the Cathedral of San Gennaro. In the end, Dudu relents, but that's only the beginning of the problems for the group. Can they overcome the many obstacles in their way and who will try to cheat who out of the treasure?

Overall, The Treasure of San Gennaro is a very enjoyable comedy/heist film that could have been even better. To begin, a lot of the comedy actually works. The scenes at the unexpected wedding, scenes with Don Vincenzo, and the explosive rat are just a few of the moments that were funny to me. The actual plan to steal the treasure is of course overly complicated and fraught with possible things that could go wrong. You just know it's all going to fall apart. I love these kinds of intricate plans. The final scene is also quite good and appropriate as the treasure comes full circle and ends where it should. Finally, the cast was enjoyable - particularly Toto, Manfredi, Mario Adorf, and Senta Berger. It's a nice cast.

Even though I've rated The Treasure of San Gennaro a 7/10, it's not without a couple of big faults. Chief among them is what I thought was an overly long script. A few judicious edits could have made this movie so much better. I would have preferred a 90 minute runtime to the 104 minute runtime.

Finally, as much as I enjoyed this movie, it's not the best Italian comedy/heist film I've seen. If you're into this kind of movie, be sure to check out Big Deal on Madonna Street. It's one remarkable movie!

7/10