Pane e Cioccolata (Bread and Chocolate) (1973)

71% of users liked it
(1,110 ratings)

A hard-working Sicilian heads for Switzerland in search of a better life in this gentle, sweet-sour Italian comedy. Despite the poor fellow's best efforts to fit in with his neighbors, he never quite seems to make it. Of course his tragedy is the audience's delight. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 52 min.
Directed By: Franco Brusati
Genres: Drama, Art House & International, Comedy

In Theaters: Jun 1, 1974 Wide
On DVD: May 2, 2005

Critic Reviews

Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Odd, entertaining little film

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Featured Audience Ratings

moon r

From 1974 this Italian piece plays at first like several skits from the old Saturday Night Live or even (going further back) the Carol Burnett Show, but soon you realise these light seeming comic moments have a heart and a soul as we follow one immigrant's journey to belong in a… More
From 1974 this Italian piece plays at first like several skits from the old Saturday Night Live or even (going further back) the Carol Burnett Show, but soon you realise these light seeming comic moments have a heart and a soul as we follow one immigrant's journey to belong in a land of wealth and promise. Better than even its own beginning ... which might be on purpose.
Walter M

[font=Century Gothic]In "Bread and Chocolate", Nino(Nino Manfredi) is an Italian citizen, living and working as a waiter in the promised land of Switzerland. He is hopeful to send for his family and is competing for a permanent position at a restaurant with an immigrant… More
[font=Century Gothic]In "Bread and Chocolate", Nino(Nino Manfredi) is an Italian citizen, living and working as a waiter in the promised land of Switzerland. He is hopeful to send for his family and is competing for a permanent position at a restaurant with an immigrant from Turkey. Nino is trying so hard to keep his nose clean, that he delays in notifying the authorities about the body he discovers in the woods. However, he is summoned into a meeting with the police on a relatively minor matter of public urination... [/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]"Bread and Chocolate" is a poignant and gentle comedy of manners about trying to succeed in a strange country and the conflict between making a better living there and the ensuing homesickness. While it does not have the impact of "Ali: Fear Eats the Soul"(which was made around the same time), this movie still has plenty to say on the subject of immigration and assimilation.[/font]