Crazy Desire

Antonio, a forty-year-old engineer from Milan, encounters a group of rowdy young people heading to the coast for a weekend getaway. He becomes infatuated with a girl in the group named Francesca and spends the weekend attempting to win her affection. To stay close to her, he joins the youths and endures their mockery and provocations, eventually realizing that his romantic illusions are misplaced and that some things cannot be reclaimed with age.

Directed by Luciano Salce, this 1962 Italian production combines elements of comedy, drama, and romance. It is the first film listed in a sequence of seven directed by Salce, which later included High Infidelity and The Second Tragic Fantozzi. The screenplay was written by Salce alongside Castellano and Pipolo, and the film was produced by Isidoro Broggi and Renato Libassi. Ugo Tognazzi stars as Antonio Berlinghieri, with Catherine Spaak playing Francesca. The supporting cast includes Gianni Garko, Franco Giacobini, Fabrizio Capucci, and Oliviero Prunas.

The movie has been received positively by viewers, maintaining a rating of 6.8/10 on IMDb based on 611 votes and a 6.6/10 on TMDB from 63 votes.