Cicciolina Amore Mio: Cicciolina, My Love.

This was a VHS top seller in the 80's.

Today's entry will spice things up not just a bit but a whole chunk because we're revisiting one of the hottest Italian stars of the 70's & 80's: Cicciolina! 

Cicciolina for the Unaware:

Ilona Staller (born 26 November 1951), widely known by her stage name, Cicciolina, is a Hungarian-born Italian porn star, politician, and singer.

Ilona was born in Budapest, Hungary. In 1964, she began working as a model for the Hungarian news agency, M.T.I. In her memoirs and in a 1999 TV interview, she claimed that she had provided the Hungarian authorities with information on American diplomats staying at a Budapest luxury hotel where she worked as a maid the 1960s. By the age of 25, and during her hotel work, she met an older Italian national named Salvatore Martini whom she later married.

 

Naturalized by marriage and settled in Italy, Staller met pornographer Riccardo Schicchi in the early 1970s, and, beginning in 1973, achieved fame with a radio show called Voulez-vous coucher avec moi? (Do you wanna go to bed with me?)  on Radio Luna. Is in that program, where she adopts her legendary nickname Cicciolina. She referred to her male fanbase, and later the male members of the Italian parliament, as "cicciolini", translating loosely as "little tubby boys". Although she appeared in several films from 1970, she made her debut under her own name in 1975 with La liceale (aka The Teasers) playing a lesbian classmate of Gloria Guida.

A woman to be taken seriously.

An original photo of her radio show.

Now, what does the extended intro have to do with today's film in review? Well, it just so happens that Ilona Staller didn't quite make an interesting acting career during the early 70's, Her roles were mostly  minor supporting cast appearances and at that time, being a beautiful Italian girl wasn't enough for making it into the big screen. Perhaps, overshadowed by the immense talents of Ornella Muti, Laura Antonelli & Gloria Guida, Staller just couldn't make it because she wasn't that much of an actress. However, her future was set and 1979 was the year that would mark her big debut on screen. 

Cicciolina Amore Mio, AKA Cicciolina My Love is somehow an autobiographic film that introduces the world to the many talents of Cicciolina, an Italian starlet who runs a popular radio show (just like the actress real life) where she listens to troubled couples, offering counseling and sharing some love secrets while we get a glimpse of her singing skills (she's also a singer in real life. Her single "Moscolo Rosso" (Red Muscle) was very popular in the late 80's. After all, not many singers directly sing about dicks) Unfortunately for her, another blonde singer(Raffaella Carra) overshadowed her singing career too but thard working was Staller's motto so after the release of her debut lead role, stardom doors opened forever.

Ride her hairy bike.

Cum with me listeners.

The film itself, it's a celebration of the new raising starlet. Everything revolves around her radio show, and somehow every character on screen is listening to her radio show. However, there's one character that will be way more obsessed with Cicciolina. Riccardo (played by Giancarlo Marinangeli) is a young boy blooming into the world of sex. His problem? his girlfriend. The solution? Meeting Cicciolina in person. 

Cicciolina Amore Mio must be one of the very softcore sex few films that having a thin plot, are not only fun to watch but also come with a statement. This movie looks, sounds and feels like the 70's in all their glory. Post hippie freedom, political statements, no strings attached, sexual revolution/liberation, psychedelic visual effects, funky/disco music and a huge load of innocence with a touch of "believe in changing the world with love" that make it a rare historical piece.  

Roses &Pink.

Grand finale.

I know some may find it hard to believe that a softcore erotic film can be more than meets the eye but believe you me, this film is an exceptional exception (no pun intended) Cicciolina's character is the ultimate representation of a freed woman who's empowered by her beauty & confidence. Nevertheless, she's neither an egotistical character nor a  sex machine (watching the film tells the difference) Her goal is to help others be set free. Her liberating tool is her radio show. The message she sends to her listeners is simple: Get naked, touch yourself, see the real you. Only through that ritual, you'll be able of fully loving your significant other ,and you know what? that doesn't sound crazy at all! Psychology & neuroscience keep on telling us to start the day by accepting our true selves in order to achieve significant happiness & success, so yeah, the blonde bombshell is not fooling around with her message.

Cicciolina Amore Mio, works perfectly as a "welcome to the world of Ilona Staller" film. Every scene was carefully shot to make her natural beauty look astonishing. As a matter of fact, I don't think she would ever look this good again. She rides a horse naked, she rides her bike flashing her boobs & pink to every citizen in town and she doesn't look dirty or slutty at all. Every nude scene is there for a reason: Listeners begin to "imagine" Cicciolina teasing herself as she speaks and yet she never masturbates or fucks, it's just a clean illusion.

The most beatiful Italian blonde ever.

Listen to yourself and let go with me.

The film was highly popular in Italy, spreading the word to the rest of Europe and eventually America. However, it didn't grant Staller an acting career (unlike what happened with other Italian starlets who filmed similar movies) but being a sought after erotic film, it led her to become a porn star debuting in 1983 with "Telefono Rosso" (Red Telephone) Her porn films were known for their hardcore rawness and shocking feature scenes (multiple orgies, zoophilia, sex with HIV actors and so on) Unfortunately, none of the films she did after Cicciolina Amore Mio became cult classics, but that didn't stop her from becoming a renowned and respected porn star with a decent singing career which ultimately led her to become a serious Italian politician (who still did porn while serving her government)

Once the film got its home release (VHS) the cult spread like melting butter and every good video rental store had several copies of it. Even though it wasn't a porno movie people would rent it over other films Cicciolina did later. The DVD release came twenty some years later in 2009 as a part of the "Il Cinema Segreto Italiano" series. Finding a copy of it today can cost you up to $200 dollars, but first, make sure you have a DVD player that can play Region 2 discs, as it was only released in Europe. The soundtrack of the film was also very popular. The music was composed by Gianni Marchetti and the songs were sung by Cicciolina herself. The album was released on CD in 2013 and you can have it for $35 dollars (expensive, I know) but hey! you can listen  to "I Was Made For Dancing" in top sounding quality!

Sweet dreams Cicciolinos!

Overall, a unique oddity film that fostered the career of perhaps the number one female porn star of the 80's. Recommended not only for masturbators and/or erotica enthusiasts but also to anyone interested in seeing a film that takes sex seriously and embellishes it with class while portraying a strong list o liberal statements like "just because you're a beautiful girl, it doesn't mean you're an object", "being nude doesn't mean I'm horny", "Beauty isn't a reason for rape" and so on. Actually, this film would be an excellent companion for the Free The Nipple Campaign which is actually saying "Female nipples aren't an object of dirty perv sex, they're just nature, and nature is beautiful" I'm not biased or anything, trust me, Cicciolina Amore Mio is not your regular softcore B movie, there's a lot more than meets the eye content here.


Here's the "I Was Made For Dancing" song:



Here's the teaser trailer:



Here's a fan made edition of the film (with almost 20 minutes of footage missing due to censorship)