The Icicle Thief

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The Icicle Thief

1989

1h 24m

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

80%

Tomatometer

10 Reviews

64%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

A cheeky satire of television and an ode to Italian neo-realist films, this playful movie features director Maurizio Nichetti playing himself. The filmmaker becomes distressed when one of his classic black-and-white movies airs on TV and is frequently interrupted by gaudy color commercials. As the film and the ads begin to overlap, and the movie's characters attempt to leave their tragic situations for consumer bliss, Nichetti enters the television world to try and sort things out.

Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

[It] works out an arresting encounter between Italian neorealism and contemporary Eurotrash consumer culture.

May 24, 2022

Full Review

Rene Jordan

El Nuevo Herald (Miami)

The Icicle Thief, which starts out laughing at Italian Neorealism, ends up succumbing to surrealism. [Full review in Spanish]

Nov 29, 2022

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 2/5

Jul 4, 2005

Full Review

Rich Cline

Shadows on the Wall

Charming and inventive.

Rated: 4/5

Jun 12, 2004

Full Review

Carol Cling

Las Vegas Review-Journal

Rated: 4/5

Aug 22, 2003

Full Review

TV Guide

Rated: 4/5

Jul 30, 2003

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Audience Member

The B/W portion is gripping and draws you in. The Color segments are laugh-out-loud incredulous.Definitely worth a watch...

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/24/23

Full Review

Audience Member

very funny. and that catchy tune'd be such a cheery phone ringtone. 'bruno' and the baby girl were so cute, and brilliant too.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

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Maurizio Nichetti

Director

Maurizio Nichetti

Antonio Piermattei

Caterina Sylos Labini

Maria Piermattei

Federico Rizzo

Bruno Piermattei

Renato Scarpa

Don Italo

Ernesto Calindri

Self

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Synopsis

A cheeky satire of television and an ode to Italian neo-realist films, this playful movie features director Maurizio Nichetti playing himself. The filmmaker becomes distressed when one of his classic black-and-white movies airs on TV and is frequently interrupted by gaudy color commercials. As the film and the ads begin to overlap, and the movie's characters attempt to leave their tragic situations for consumer bliss, Nichetti enters the television world to try and sort things out.

Director: Maurizio Nichetti
Screenwriter: Maurizio Nichetti, Mauro Monti
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: Italian
Runtime: 1h 24m