VIP: My Brother Superman (Template:Lang-it), often known in English as The SuperVips,[1] is a 1968 Italian animated film directed by Bruno Bozzetto. It is a parody of superheroes[2] and enjoyed a good commercial and critical success.[3] In 2008 it was produced a spin-off TV-series in 3D animation, PsicoVip.[4][5]
Plot[]
Recounting the adventures of the last in a line of Supermen, the film pokes fun at the processes that lie behind advertising, politics and our consumer society.[6]
Bruno Bozzetto's animated satire about two descendants of superpowered beings, known as the Vips. One of these modern day superheroes—SuperVip, to be exact—is easily recognizable as such, possessing an Adonis-like physique, a dynamic personality and an array of heightened abilities. The other—MiniVip—is not quite so prepossessing. His growth is stunted, he wears horn-rimmed glasses, his paunch is wider than his chest, and his powers are a bit more limited than his brother's, being able only to fly through two little wings while emitting a small glow at night that makes him similar to a firefly. But both Vips are needed when a Happy Betty, lady tycoon with a taste for ruling the world, rears her ugly head. The question is, can MiniVip defeat his worst enemy—his intimidated ego—to help save the day?[7]
Cast[]
Character | Original | English |
---|---|---|
Nazi scientist | Roberto Bertea | John Prim |
Lisa | Fiorella Betti | Unknown |
Radio Newscaster | Vittorio Cramer | |
Narrator | Carlo D'Angelo | |
Adam's boys Leader | Luciano De Ambrosis | |
Nightclub Bouncer | Arturo Dominici | George Birt |
Nervustrella | Micaela Esdra | Unknown |
Colonel | Corrado Gaipa | |
Mini VIP | Oreste Lionello | Lee Payant |
Schultz | Pino Locchi | Unknown |
Happy Betty | Lydia Simoneschi |
Production[]
VIP, My Brother Superman was the second feature length animation made by director Bruno Bozzetto after his Western spoof West and Soda.Stub Bozzetto felt that an American he refers to as Lady Robinson was "a real pain in the ass!" as she would come to Milan and felt "entitled to talk about the film, and came up with mind-blowing bullshit!"Stub The character known as Happy Betty has slave employees in the film who are Asian, which led to American finances of the film to make objections.Stub Bozzetto stated that Lady Robinson felt the film could not be sold to Japan with the Asian slave characters and asked to make them green.Stub
Release[]
My Brother Superman was released in Italy in 1968.Stub In the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, it is titled The SuperVips.[8] An airing on Channel 4 in the U.K. in 1990 also used this title. The film was released on DVD in the United States by DigiView Entertainment as Vip, My Brother Superman.Stub The film was also released on October 7, 2014 on All Regions DVD. This is a restored version of this film and the picture quality is improved compared to the DigiView release. The audio is in Italian 5.1 and Italian dual mono. This DVD has extra content, including a 45 minute interview with Bruno Bozzetto, storyboards and original promotional material.
References[]
Footnotes[]
- ↑ SuperVips on IMDB.com.
- ↑ Roberto Chiavini, Gian Filippo Pizzo, Michele Tetro, Il grande cinema di fantascienza: da "2001" al 2001. Gremese Editore, 2001, p.159
- ↑ Gian Piero Brunetta. The History of Italian Cinema. Princeton University Press, 2009.
- ↑ PSICOVIP by Bruno Bozzetto - Animation Film @ Brooklyn Film Festival. Brooklynfilmfestival.org (2012-06-11).
- ↑ Mario Serellini. "Bozzetto: il cinema snobba i cartoon italiani ma mi vuole Disney", April 6, 2009.
- ↑ barn produzioni multimediali. Barn.it.
- ↑ Craig Butler (2013). Vip-My-Brother-Superman - Trailer - Cast - Showtimes. The New York Times. Baseline & All Movie Guide.
- ↑ SuperVips on IMDB.com.
Sources[]
- Curti, Roberto (2016). Diabolika: Supercriminals, Superheroes and the Comic Book Universe in Italian Cinema. Midnight Marquee Press. ISBN 978-1-936168-60-6.
External links[]
Template:Bruno Bozzetto