Fatso (film)
Encyclopedia
Fatso is a 1980 American comedy film
written and directed by Anne Bancroft
and starring Bancroft herself, Dom DeLuise
, Ron Carey
and Candice Azzara
.
When Sal suddenly dies at the young age of thirty-nine, the entire family grieves, and prompts Antoinette to urge Dom to visit the diet doctor that Sal was supposed to visit, so as not to further copy his cousin's unhealthy eating habits, and drive himself into an early grave as well. Dom is reluctant, but agrees to do so when he begins to realize the signs that his obesity is ruining his health; after his examination, Dom is heartbroken when he is given his new diet plan, and he sees the long list of things he can no longer eat, that he has always loved. The diets fail, and Dom's eating habits begin to drive his sister crazy, who enlists him in the Chubby Checkers support group. Meanwhile, Dom meets Lydia (Azzarra), who owns the town antique shop, and quickly falls in love with the her when he realize they have a lot in common, but being self-conscious about his weight, he fears rejection, and can't bring himself to ask her out.
Now further depressed, Dom seeks comfort from his Chubby Checkers - Sonny and Oscar (Richard Karron and Paul Zegler), who turn out to be of little help, as their reminiscing about their favorite desserts and dishes drives them to having a pig-out party in the kitchen. To help their brother, Antoinette and Frankie bring Dom and Lydia together, and the two begin dating; while dating Lydia, Dom doesn't realize that he has been eating less and less, and is shocked to discover at how loose his clothes fit in a matter of weeks.
Finally, Dom decides to propose to Lydia, but when he drops by her apartment, he finds she is gone, and there is no sign of her, which worries him so much, that he ends up eating all of the Chinese takeout food he was supposed to pick up for family for a party. It is at this point that Frankie and Antoinette finally begin to think Dom is crazy; Dom begins to think so as well, and in a fit of self-loathing, blames his mother for her constant feeding him, but realizes that she only did what she thought was best, and that he has to love himself the way he is, and that his siblings need to accept him for who he is. Dom then receives a phone call from Lydia, who is in a hospital in Boston visiting her younger brother, who had been admitted after accidentally chopping his finger off; Dom flies in to help Lydia care for her injured sibling, and when the two take a walk through the hospital, and watch the newborn babies in the nursery, Dom whispers his marriage proposal into Lydia's ear, to which she replies, "Yes."
The film ends with a photo montage of now-married Dom and Lydia, and their newborn babies - with each photo showing Lydia holding a new baby, while the previous child grows up.
This film was also reviewed in the psychiatric monograph The Eating Disorders, which concluded that the film "... veers between comedy and pathos as a man discovers ... fat is the ... only sin in America." They approvingly note that, "The motivation for overeating and binge dieting are lampooned ... [and] medical consequences ... are elaborated in ... comedic fashion.".
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
written and directed by Anne Bancroft
Anne Bancroft
Anne Bancroft was an American actress associated with the Method acting school, which she had studied under Lee Strasberg....
and starring Bancroft herself, Dom DeLuise
Dom DeLuise
Dominick "Dom" DeLuise was an American actor, comedian, film director, television producer, chef, and author. He was the husband of actress Carol Arthur from 1965 until his death and the father of: actor, director, pianist, and writer Peter DeLuise; actor David DeLuise; and actor Michael DeLuise...
, Ron Carey
Ron Carey (actor)
Ron Carey was an American film and television actor. The 5-foot 4-inch actor was best known for playing cocky Officer Carl Levitt on TV's Barney Miller, in which he was almost always surrounded by male actors who stood at least 4" taller...
and Candice Azzara
Candice Azzara
Candice "Candy" Azzara is an American character actress frequently cast in Italian or Jewish roles.Azzara was born in Brooklyn, the daughter of Josephine and Samuel Azzara. She was inspired to pursue acting by the film La Strada and theatre legend Eleanora Duse...
.
Plot
The film begins by chronicling the DiNapoli siblings - Antoinette (Bancroft), Domenico (DeLuise), and Frank Jr. (Carey) - growing up, whenever young Dom became upset by something, the one thing his mother did to comfort him, was to feed him, from nursing him while crying in the middle of the night as a baby, to giving him a cannoli after being urinated on by his baby brother as he's being changed. Because of this, Dom grew up with a love of food, a trait that was shared by his equally obese cousin, Salvatore (Sal).When Sal suddenly dies at the young age of thirty-nine, the entire family grieves, and prompts Antoinette to urge Dom to visit the diet doctor that Sal was supposed to visit, so as not to further copy his cousin's unhealthy eating habits, and drive himself into an early grave as well. Dom is reluctant, but agrees to do so when he begins to realize the signs that his obesity is ruining his health; after his examination, Dom is heartbroken when he is given his new diet plan, and he sees the long list of things he can no longer eat, that he has always loved. The diets fail, and Dom's eating habits begin to drive his sister crazy, who enlists him in the Chubby Checkers support group. Meanwhile, Dom meets Lydia (Azzarra), who owns the town antique shop, and quickly falls in love with the her when he realize they have a lot in common, but being self-conscious about his weight, he fears rejection, and can't bring himself to ask her out.
Now further depressed, Dom seeks comfort from his Chubby Checkers - Sonny and Oscar (Richard Karron and Paul Zegler), who turn out to be of little help, as their reminiscing about their favorite desserts and dishes drives them to having a pig-out party in the kitchen. To help their brother, Antoinette and Frankie bring Dom and Lydia together, and the two begin dating; while dating Lydia, Dom doesn't realize that he has been eating less and less, and is shocked to discover at how loose his clothes fit in a matter of weeks.
Finally, Dom decides to propose to Lydia, but when he drops by her apartment, he finds she is gone, and there is no sign of her, which worries him so much, that he ends up eating all of the Chinese takeout food he was supposed to pick up for family for a party. It is at this point that Frankie and Antoinette finally begin to think Dom is crazy; Dom begins to think so as well, and in a fit of self-loathing, blames his mother for her constant feeding him, but realizes that she only did what she thought was best, and that he has to love himself the way he is, and that his siblings need to accept him for who he is. Dom then receives a phone call from Lydia, who is in a hospital in Boston visiting her younger brother, who had been admitted after accidentally chopping his finger off; Dom flies in to help Lydia care for her injured sibling, and when the two take a walk through the hospital, and watch the newborn babies in the nursery, Dom whispers his marriage proposal into Lydia's ear, to which she replies, "Yes."
The film ends with a photo montage of now-married Dom and Lydia, and their newborn babies - with each photo showing Lydia holding a new baby, while the previous child grows up.
Reviews
The film critic Peter Wu described the film as "A very humorous and yet serious movie about obesity.", going on to write: "Maybe being overweight isn't the best thing for a person's health, but being one's self and being happy is all that really matters in life ... With a delightful blend of New York Italian culture and the human problem of overeating, Fatso makes for an entertaining movie experience. Loaded with some of the funniest comedy gags I have ever seen, Fatso is a very humorous and yet serious movie about a very touchy subject, Dom DeLuise!"This film was also reviewed in the psychiatric monograph The Eating Disorders, which concluded that the film "... veers between comedy and pathos as a man discovers ... fat is the ... only sin in America." They approvingly note that, "The motivation for overeating and binge dieting are lampooned ... [and] medical consequences ... are elaborated in ... comedic fashion.".
Cast
- Dom DeLuiseDom DeLuiseDominick "Dom" DeLuise was an American actor, comedian, film director, television producer, chef, and author. He was the husband of actress Carol Arthur from 1965 until his death and the father of: actor, director, pianist, and writer Peter DeLuise; actor David DeLuise; and actor Michael DeLuise...
as Dominick Anthony "Dom" DiNapoli - Anne BancroftAnne BancroftAnne Bancroft was an American actress associated with the Method acting school, which she had studied under Lee Strasberg....
as Antoinette Sosonna (nee DiNapoli) - Ron CareyRon Carey (actor)Ron Carey was an American film and television actor. The 5-foot 4-inch actor was best known for playing cocky Officer Carl Levitt on TV's Barney Miller, in which he was almost always surrounded by male actors who stood at least 4" taller...
as Frank "Frankie" DiNapoli, Jr. - Candice AzzaraCandice AzzaraCandice "Candy" Azzara is an American character actress frequently cast in Italian or Jewish roles.Azzara was born in Brooklyn, the daughter of Josephine and Samuel Azzara. She was inspired to pursue acting by the film La Strada and theatre legend Eleanora Duse...
as Lydia Bollowenski - Estelle ReinerEstelle ReinerEstelle Reiner , described by The New York Times as "matriarch of one of the leading families in American comedy", was an actress, the wife of Carl Reiner, and the mother of Rob Reiner, Sylvia Anne Reiner and Lucas Reiner...
as Mrs Goodman - Richard Karron as Sonny "Big Guy" Loffolotto
- Paul Zegler as Oscar "Jew" Lapidus
- Father Bob Curtis as Father Monohan
- Michael Lombard as Charlie Sosonna
- Natasha Ryan as Ann Marie Sosonna
- David Comfort as Anthony Sosonna
- Sal ViscusoSal ViscusoSal Viscuso is an American actor.His most notable role was as the uncredited, unseen P.A. system announcer in the long-running TV series M*A*S*H. He also made several one-shot appearances as other characters throughout the series, usually as a patient at the 4077th...
as Vito (Dom's cousin)