We are all in love with Stanley Tucci, thanks to his witty and delicious television series on CNN, called “In Search of Italy.” As one of my friends said, “Even if I eat an enormous dinner before watching it, I’m starving by the end of the show.”
Sometimes people can devote themselves to one type of work for decades and then suddenly enjoy enormous success for something unexpected. This seems to have been the case for the 61-year-old Tucci, who has been a well-known character actor in large and small films since the early 1980s. He was also, according to his Wikipedia bio, a model in the 1980s for the Levi’s jean company (he is 5-foot 8-inches, according to another website, and of course we always believe what we read on the internet).
“In Search of Italy” seems to have generated an enormous new fan base for the actor, who comes across in the show as quick, funny, adorable and an exceptionally good guide to the cooking of all the regions of Italy. There were only four episodes this season; the final one aired on May 22. Apparently the shows will eventually be available to stream on Netflix.
Tucci produced other small, personal projects through the years, some with cult followings (although none has inspired the same mania as “In Search of Italy,” which is similar to the stir created by Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy in a famous production of “Pride and Prejudice”).
An earlier food-related project from Tucci was the 1996 film “Big Night,” in which he and his “brother” (the actor Tony Shalhoub, who was so wonderful in the TV series “Monk”) own an Italian restaurant in the 1950s and have to explain to their customers that one does not order risotto with a side order of spaghetti.
Two years later, Tucci wrote and directed the film “Impostors,” which can best be described as a silly romp in which two starving actors stow away on a cruise ship in the 1930s (or thereabouts). Featured performers include several locals including Campbell Scott of Sharon, Conn., who was Tucci’s childhood friend; Oliver Platt of Berkshire County; and Steve Buscemi, who has a home in the Hudson River Valley.
New fans of the Tucci oeuvre who would like to see some of his older work on a big screen have the opportunity to do so on Friday, June 10, in Kingston, N.Y., thanks to the Boondocks Film Society, based here in Litchfield County. Boondocks shows cult favorite films in unusual locations that relate to the movie, with craft cocktails and a light meal. “Impostors” will be shown at the Hudson River Maritime Museum.
The film will be shown outdoors at dusk, around 7 p.m. Before that there will be boat rides, 1930s-style jazz by The Lucky Five, movie-themed food and, said Boondocks organizer Jeff Palfini, there will be “‘sail-freight’ beer and cider transported by our partner in this event, Schooner Apollonia.”
Tickets for the June 10 screening of “Impostors” are $20; order at https://boondocksfilmsociety.org, where you can also find out about future events.
