Weekly Dose of Italian Culture #7

Welcome to the seventh episode of Weekly Dose of Italian Culture, the series that teaches you about Italian culture and customs.

Italian Movie of the Week

My pick for this week is Borotalco (Talcum Powder), a hilarious comedy from 1982. This film has achieved cult status among fans of its star and director, Carlo Verdone.

Borotalco (1982)

Italian cinephiles who are nostalgic for this era often fondly quote several lines from this movie.

I wouldn’t recommend it to absolute beginners in Italian, as many references and jokes may be lost in translation. However, if you’re somewhat fluent in the language, you might find many scenes in this movie both hilarious and a great snapshot of Italy and its culture at that time.

Italian Song of the Week

My song of the week is Oro by Mango.

Oro means gold, and the song is about a lover who worships a woman he sees as unreachable. In his eyes, she is like gold. However, her allure and mystique vanish when she reveals herself as available.

Oro, oro, oro
Gold, gold, gold

Per averti così
To have you like this

Distesa, pura, ma tu ci stai
Laid out, pure, but you agree

Perché accetti e ci stai?
Why do you accept and agree?

E così tu cadi giù
And so you fall down

Io non ti voglio già più
I don't want you anymore

Mango has many great songs that I highly recommend checking out. Sadly, he passed away a few years ago while performing on stage, but he remains appreciated in Italy, with 675,000 monthly listeners on Spotify.

If the name sounds familiar, it might be because his daughter, Angelina Mango, is currently in the spotlight, even winning the Sanremo Festival in 2024 (Sanremo is Italy's most prestigious music competition.)

Famous Italian of the Week

This week’s famous Italian is Maurizio Costanzo.

Maurizio Costanzo