Tales of Ordinary Madness (1981)

one of my absolute favorites!

Film Perfection

Excellent but underrated film

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

I would defy anyone who has seen this movie to forget it, whether they liked it or not.I saw it years ago and two scenes in particular stayed with me. The first is the lecture alcoholic poet and street philosopher, Charles Serking (Ben Gazara) gives at the beginning of the film on the meaning of style where he makes observations such as, "…I have seen dogs with more style than men", and "…I have met more men in jail with style than men out of jail", and so on. The other is the wince-inducing scene where Ornella Muti passes the safety pin from hell through both cheeks – she does it for real, outdoing even David Blaine for shock effect."Tales of Ordinary Madness" is a dangerous movie. It weaves along the line between the acceptable and the unacceptable. A scene early in the film where Serking flirts backstage with either a very young girl or a very small woman is worrying – the film revels in its brinkmanship.The film follows the encounters, mainly sexual, of Serking in the sleazier parts of Los Angeles. Self indulgent, rarely without a bottle in his hand, but also burnt out by life, Serking wears his pain on his sleeve. We find that although he is not without compassion, he has a tendency towards self-destruction. However, when he meets Cass (Ornella Muti), a beautiful prostitute, he learns what self-destruction is all about.Although Serking's life starts to look up – he actually receives a lucrative offer from a publishing house – he commits possibly his most self-destructive act when he falls in love with Cass with inevitable tragic results. After he reaches rock-bottom, the film ends as he meets another young woman, rekindling his love of poetry.I'm surprised that some reviewers feel that the leads were miscast. I think they are close to perfect. Ben Gazara is particularly effective as Serking, partly because he brings with him that edginess he brought to every role he played.Ornella Muti has been accused of being too beautiful. She is a big contrast to the more life-beaten characters in this film, but surely that is also why she is so effective, and that safety pin scene really establishes her character.Based on stories by Charles Bukowski, Italian director, Marco Ferreri has tied them together seamlessly. Like Altman's "Short Cuts", made from some of Raymond Carver's stories also set in L.A., the format works because stories from the same hand, although treated separately, have a natural link through common themes and the author's worldview."Tales of Ordinary Madness" is a challenging work, and a polarising one. I can't say I loved it, but then again I have never forgotten it – it is an experience, and a raw one at that.

Not the easiest of films to watch but a really decent attempt at portraying Bukowski on film and containing some great scenes and very fine performances.Ben Gazzara, who probably is too good looking but nevertheless most convincing in the lead role is excellent, Ornella Muti is simply wonderful (and probably too good looking as well!) and at her peak of beauty here. Just wish she wouldn't do those things with safety pins!Susan Tyrrel also impresses in key sequences, but it's the whole thing that works so well.With such a difficult subject matter,Ferreri has done a tremendous job.

Yes, this would never be a blockbuster... yes, it is weird, depressive and sad... Ornella Muti IS (as one of Bukowski's best known texts) the most beautiful girl in the world! And if you liked Titanic or Pretty Woman you'll probably hate it. But if you wanna try to have an open mind and realize that life is NOT beautiful, you should try and take a look.

Charles Bukowski is one of the most important men to have ever lived. His work is of the ages and I would put thousands of his passages up against the work of all those writers generally considered great. What all that has to do with this movie is not very much. As a film it falls short of the mark as it wanders like a drunk through the streets trying to give us a snapshot of sorts, a month in the life of the great Charles Bukowski. As for reality, I am sure that the Buk was pretty much drunk all the time and wasted lots of time with dirty women but that was his business. I am just glad that he put in some heavy time at the typewriter. I am also grateful for this film as it provides another document, a bit of proof that Charles Bukowski was real. Ben Gazarra does a nice job painting this particular picture of Chuck but it is not a performance that would alone make this a rental for the upcoming acting students. For a more realistic approach check our Mickey Rourke in Barfly. There is a very beautiful Italian actress (Ornella Muti) in this picture who plays the main love interest. She is worth the price of rental or even a bloated DVD purchase. I doubt that Bukowski ever had a girl this beautiful but that's the movies for ya.