The author advances her argument through insightful close readings of a large number of films. She limns the relevant theory as it arises without grinding the analysis to a halt. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. (M. Yacowar, Choice, Vol. 53 (10), June, 2016) Bini's innovative approach to one of the most popular types ... Read moreof Italian cinema, commedia all'italiana, is a much-needed addition to the field. The author's thorough and insightful close analyses of works from the 1950s and 1960s expose readers to a wide variety of Italian comedies, many of which are not well known in the English-speaking world. His thesis that cinema anticipated the boom that arose from a crisis regarding national identity, exposed by the failures of fascism, is particularly compelling. - Mary Ann McDonald Carolan, Associate Professor of Modern Languages & Literature, Fairfield University, USA Show Less