The Friends at the Café Margherita

"Bologna, 1954. Taddeo, a young man of 18, dreams of becoming one of the regulars of the legendary Margherita Café, located under the portico across from his family’s home.

"Through a ploy he manages to become chauffeur to Al, the neighbourhood’s most glamorous and mysterious resident. Taken under Al’s wing, Taddeo gets to witness the adventures of a diverse collection of characters. There’s Bep who is in love with Marcella the entraineuse; Gian, an aspiring singer and the victim of a horrible practical joke; Manuelo, a small-time robber with a phobia about sex; Zanchi, inventor of the elastic necktie, and the bizarre Sarti, a ballroom dancing champion who wears his tux day and night.

"And Taddeo’s home life is no less out of the ordinary; his mother is being led on by the family physician, while his grandfather has fallen head over heels for a well-built piano teacher. Taddeo’s horizons are irrefutably widened, but will he ever graduate from the nickname ‘Kid’?

"In this film, reminiscent of Fellini’s Vitelloni, Pupi Avati has assembled a stellar cast to create a glorious homage to life in 1950’s Italy." (Italian Film Festival)

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