Messalina, Messalina! – 1977
Director
Bruno Corbucci

Writers
Mario Amendola
Bruno Corbucci

Producers
Renato Jaboni executive producer
Franco Rossellini producer

Cast
Anneka Di Lorenzo – Messalina
Vittorio Caprioli – Claudius
Giancarlo Prete
Lori Wagner – Agrippina
Raf Luca
Bombolo
Pino Ferrara
Sal Borgese
Alessandra Cardini
Luca Sportelli
Ombretta De Carlo
Primo Marcotulli
Viviana Larice
Lino Toffolo – Gaius Silius
Tomas Milian – Baba
Alessandro Cardini

Review by Sven Soetemans

Um…* scratches head *,

How in God’s name do you review a film like Messalinaｲ? Purely seen from an objective viewpoint, this has got to be one of the worst movies ever made and, if you swear by quality-cinema like Citizen Kane, this film is most likely to cause you a heart attack. But on the other hand, I don’t really see a reason to bash this production entirely. It’s obvious that Messalina doesn’t aim for being a masterpiece, as it was made by a bunch of nutballs disposing over some leftover sets and scenery of a previously made film about the Roman Empire. This film actually is a spoof ahead of its time. The jokes and unsubtle references aren’t very funny, but it all becomes hilarious because of its cheapness. The characters are extremely stupid and the humor is pure slapstick (some of the fart jokes here even outshine the Zucker bros. films).

The inferior plot merely handles about the infamous Empress Messalina. While her husband Claudius does whatever he can to make the people of Rome like him, she screws around with every male that comes in her sight. There absolutely is no continuity in this film and the acting is painfully bad. Yet, it is the light-headed and goofy atmosphere (along with the sleazy acts of Di Lorenzi) that prevents you from turning it off.There’s a massacre-sequence near the end that has to be seen to be believed.

If you’re in to eccentric exploitation adventures, this is your thing. All the rest: avoid!