I would defy anyone who has seen this movie to forget it, whether they liked it or not.I saw it years ago and two scenes in particular stayed with me. The first is the lecture alcoholic poet and street philosopher, Charles Serking (Ben Gazara) gives at the beginning of the film on the meaning of style where he makes observations such as, "…I have seen dogs with more style than men", and "…I have met more men in jail with style than men out of jail", and so on. The other is the wince-inducing scene where Ornella Muti passes the safety pin from hell through both cheeks – she does it for real, outdoing even David Blaine for shock effect."Tales of Ordinary Madness" is a dangerous movie. It weaves along the line between the acceptable and the unacceptable. A scene early in the film where Serking flirts backstage with either a very young girl or a very small woman is worrying – the film revels in its brinkmanship.The film follows the encounters, mainly sexual, of Serking in the sleazier parts of Los Angeles. Self indulgent, rarely without a bottle in his hand, but also burnt out by life, Serking wears his pain on his sleeve. We find that although he is not without compassion, he has a tendency towards self-destruction. However, when he meets Cass (Ornella Muti), a beautiful prostitute, he learns what self-destruction is all about.Although Serking's life starts to look up – he actually receives a lucrative offer from a publishing house – he commits possibly his most self-destructive act when he falls in love with Cass with inevitable tragic results. After he reaches rock-bottom, the film ends as he meets another young woman, rekindling his love of poetry.I'm surprised that some reviewers feel that the leads were miscast. I think they are close to perfect. Ben Gazara is particularly effective as Serking, partly because he brings with him that edginess he brought to every role he played.Ornella Muti has been accused of being too beautiful. She is a big contrast to the more life-beaten characters in this film, but surely that is also why she is so effective, and that safety pin scene really establishes her character.Based on stories by Charles Bukowski, Italian director, Marco Ferreri has tied them together seamlessly. Like Altman's "Short Cuts", made from some of Raymond Carver's stories also set in L.A., the format works because stories from the same hand, although treated separately, have a natural link through common themes and the author's worldview."Tales of Ordinary Madness" is a challenging work, and a polarising one. I can't say I loved it, but then again I have never forgotten it – it is an experience, and a raw one at that.

Not the easiest of films to watch but a really decent attempt at portraying Bukowski on film and containing some great scenes and very fine performances.Ben Gazzara, who probably is too good looking but nevertheless most convincing in the lead role is excellent, Ornella Muti is simply wonderful (and probably too good looking as well!) and at her peak of beauty here. Just wish she wouldn't do those things with safety pins!Susan Tyrrel also impresses in key sequences, but it's the whole thing that works so well.With such a difficult subject matter,Ferreri has done a tremendous job.

The movie is based on the novel of Charles Bukowski... and the film contains its spirit. "Storie di ordinaria follia" is deliberately sensual and "dirt", the main carachter (Ben Gazzara) takes directly inspiration from Bukowski himself -a drunk writer, who chooses to live among poors and neglected people, a man who lives sex like a philosophy, in order to taste the primal feeling of life...-.The picture is worth watching -because Gazzara is very good and Ornella Muti as well, she's also so sweet and gorgeous...-. The film is interesting because it tries to capture Bukowski ideals and his pessimistic ways to see the world. I think nevertheless that it is very difficult to film "materials" from a writer like him, because he's so excessive and outrageous... It's particularly difficult to translate his thoughts in pictures. The film is quite boring, the action is slow. Sometimes we have the feeling that there's no story. Marco Ferreri did doubtless better films (see "La grande bouffe" and "Don't touch the white woman").

While some of the sex scenes here have an undeniable raw force, calling this "a good movie" would be going too far indeed. It's stagnant in its pacing, and the female characters are conceived in a way that has no bearing on reality whatsoever. By the way, Ornella Muti is beautiful but her "performance" is very poor. (*1/2)