COMISARIO MONTALBANO ACTORES SERIES

In the television version, VigГ ta is represented by the real town of Ragusa (even though the author really had Porto Empedocle in mind) while MontalbanoвЂ™s beachfront house is in Punta Secca, which stands in for the fictional вЂњMarinellaвЂќ. (For some reason, the BBC decided to demote Montalbano to mere Inspector, which to me makes the relative ranks in the police station inconsistent and confusing.)

Montalbano is вЂњCommissarioвЂќ or Chief of Police in VigГ ta. Unlike Don Matteo in the real town of Gubbio, the show follows the original novels on which itвЂ™s based in having the fictional town of вЂњVigГ taвЂќ as its setting. Even so, the Italian subtitles are more standard than the real dialogue, which means that when the text doesnвЂ™t match the words I get a little bit of the flavour of how Sicilian is different. The programme is set in Sicily, but IвЂ™m pretty sure that the Sicilian dialect is toned way down in it. The same applies when I watch Commissario Montalbano in the Italian version, rather than the BBCвЂ™s English-subtitled one. I can read Italian far better than I can hear it. In order to pick up all the dialogue, I have to have the subtitles for the deaf on the screen. ThatвЂ™s why I now know the Italian for slut, asshole and liar. My Italian is good enough to grasp almost all of an average episode of Don Matteo, including the jokes, although I sometimes need to note down individual words or phrases so that I can look them up later. The comic sub-plots are more varied, but tend to centre on the actions of either the Carabinieri sergeant or Don MatteoвЂ™s housekeeper, both played by well-known Italian comedy actors. The main plot is almost always formulaic, with Don Matteo one step ahead of the local Carabinieri and usually being able to confront the criminal and persuade him or her to confess just as the blue flashing lights arrive. Part of the attraction for me was that IвЂ™ve been to Gubbio a couple of times, and even visited Don MatteoвЂ™s church.

He plays a priest, Don Matteo, retired from a rough and dangerous missionary life to a parish in the city of Gubbio in Umbria. HeвЂ™s getting on a bit now, but still has the striking blue eyes and rugged good looks. It stars Terence Hill, formerly a cowboy in spaghetti westerns, such as My Name Is Trinity. The latter is a fairly lightweight piece of puff with a strong comedy undercurrent.

COMISARIO MONTALBANO ACTORES SERIES

Of the two main series I watched, one, Commissario Montalbano, has been shown on the BBC with English subtitles, while the other, Don Matteo, hasnвЂ™t been shown to English-speaking audiences, as far as I know. That doesnвЂ™t impress me much.)ДЄll of which goes to explain why I picked detective fiction on television to try to improve my Italian language skills. (ThatвЂ™s shows with deduction, logic and analysis not violence, shooting and car chases. Maybe thereвЂ™s something in Simon Baron-CohenвЂ™s theories. So maybe the screen fiction I would like would be less about feelings and relationships and more about logic and systems? Say, detective dramas.

The gloss for those marks was, quote: вЂњyou have an above average ability for analysing and exploring a systemвЂќ and вЂњyou have a lower than average ability for understanding how other people feel and responding appropriatelyвЂќ. I scored 61 (high) for вЂњsystemizingвЂќ and 33 (low) for вЂњempathizingвЂќ. I saw on a science programme a bit about Simon Baron-CohenвЂ™s theories of вЂњsystemizingвЂќ versus вЂњempathizingвЂќ and, curious, found an internet questionnaire which claimed to place you on his spectrum. That may well be related to my particular type of mind. Mainly, I just canвЂ™t be bothered to make the emotional investment to sit down and engage, which I suppose suggests that the reward I get is insufficient to justify the effort. But like a relationship that doesnвЂ™t work, itвЂ™s a case of вЂњitвЂ™s not them itвЂ™s meвЂќ. ItвЂ™s not that I have a low opinion of it: there are many famous and successful shows that IвЂ™m sure must deserve their reputation.

Comisario montalbano actores