Is this supposed to be funny?

[gothikmaus]

I was having a look at Kai Sehr's website (the guy who directed the "3-Tage Bart" video) and stumbled upon this ad:

http://www.kaisehr.com/uploads/work_bk_italian.italian.mov

All right, it's just an ad. All right, I make fun of all those "stereotypical Italian clichés" as well. But it's starting to annoy me. Also, I'd like to know something:

Dear non-Italians on my flist, what's the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of Italy? Be honest, please, I'm not going to get offended if your first thought is "mafia", "pizza", or "Berlusconi", I'm only curious.

And, speaking of Italy and Italian, I'm translating the lyrics of all the songs from "13" in Italian for a friend, and I'm having a lot of fun.

EDIT: Another video on Italian stereotypes, this one made me laugh so much I had tears in my eyes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXUmxIqqn0Y

Unfortunately it's in Italian with Dutch subtitles, but the story is: family goes to an Italian restaurant, Italian waiters and cooks comment on the daughter's beauty and say unfortunately she's going to become just as ugly as her mother in a few years, everyone laughs, father gets annoyed and says (in Italian): "Hey, you spaghetti eater, if you're done chatting with your pals, can you bring us our food?"

I found that hilarious because it's SO TRUE. Generally speaking, Italians don't speak foreign languages, maybe they can speak some English, but that's it. Therefor, they think foreigners can't speak Italian, and feel free to comment on them. Very loudly. I say "they" and not "we" because I'm always very careful when I'm abroad, I don't want to end up in situations like that. XD

Be careful, fellow Italians, be careful...

Comments

[polarforscherin.livejournal.com]

The clip is bad, really bad. It's one of a few very stupid ads BK uses here. I must say, mostly I'm not a big fan of Kai Sehr's work for DÄ. Only some details...^^

Okay, brainstorming:

01. Venice
02. Lake Garda
03. my lecturer from Südtirol
04. food
05. very nice, well-dressed and good looking men
06. mafia
07. Goethes "Italienische Reise"
08. "Maria, ihm schmeckt's nicht" (A book, maybe you know it?)
09. Donna Leon and Commissario Brunetti
10. a couple of sportsmen/-women

That's not so bad, I'd say. ;D

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

>>very nice, well-dressed and good looking men

Where? WHERE??? XD

>>"Maria, ihm schmeckt's nicht" (A book, maybe you know it?)

No, I think it wasn't even translated into Italian? I found an article on it and on another similar book ("La Deutsche Vita") here: http://www.viaggio-in-germania.de/deutschevita.html

And what about me? What comes to my mind when I think of Germany?

1) Die Ärzte (DUH! XD)
2) Berlin ♥
3) Nice trains (I know you won't agree with this ;) )
4) Ecology
5) Efficiency

But I have so many Germany-related memories that, whenever I think of it, my mind fills up with images, so it's difficult to say what I associate with the "idea of Germany".

[polarforscherin.livejournal.com]

I saw a lot of them, I swear. Okay, some years ago, but I don't think they've changed. I remember a guy who worked on a ship on Lake Garda. I was fifteen and very much in love. He had Farin's build and black hair and a verrrry nice beard. XD
I've never talked to him. I was too shy. Damnit!

I don't know "La Deutsche Vita", "Maria, ihm schmeckt's nicht" is very funny, also its sequel "Antonio im Wunderland".

3) Nice trains (I know you won't agree with this ;) )
Well, the ICE trains are amazing, but only when they aren't crowded. I talked to my brother some minutes ago. He's on his way home. He takes the ICE from its second stop on, it's so crowded, you were only allowed to enter when you have a reservation. Luckily he wasn't to lazy to get one today. XD

The other trains are a bit better now. Some of them were even in time. So I'm less angry than I was some weeks ago. ;D

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

Mmh, maybe I should read the book... in German? It would take me months to finish it. XD

Well, maybe I've just been lucky with trains, I'm sure you have a more objective view on them, since you use them more often.

And aww, teen love. XD

[polarforscherin.livejournal.com]

And aww, teen love. Yes. A nice memory. :)

It would take me months to finish it. XD
No, it's not that long, about 250 pages. It's a book for one evening.

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

250 pages in one evening? Not me, I'm an extremely slow reader. Well, all right, I finished the last Harry Potter books very quickly (about three days, I think), but those were a exceptions. I remember I finished one very quickly, I was supposed to study for an exam and didn't have much time, but was too curious to wait for a week, so I was like "Must... finish... NOW!" XD

But I may give it a try, I think a bookshop in Milan sells it. I'll let you know. :)

[polarforscherin.livejournal.com]

I'm a restless reader. I have to readreadread when I want to read. Sadly that's a bit expensive. ;)

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

I've just found out our local library has the book! :O I'm going to borrow it tomorrow! :)

[polarforscherin.livejournal.com]

WOW! I'm impressed. :)

There will be a movie soon, with Christian Ulmen, Maren Kroymann, Mina Tander and Sergio Rubini. I'll see it.

[gimmesimon.livejournal.com]

Venice and canals, gondolas and straw hats.
The Leaning Tower.
Mopeds, the Pope, "Ciaaaooo" (a la Eddie Izzard).
Umm..... Parmesan cheese, pasta and the words 'pino grigio'.
Gerbils (I'm never sure why but I think they hailed from that area).

Yea, I can go on all day like this. ^-^

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

>>Gerbils (I'm never sure why but I think they hailed from that area).

Did they??? o_O

[angrylogic.livejournal.com]

First thing I think of when someone says "Italy"?

Puppets. Really evil string puppets. I also think of slicked, oily men all naked (though I think of that most of the time). There is also the thought of planes crashing into mountains (I have NO idea why). Oh, and women with fake babies. And tommy guns!

Li thinks of waiters grabbing their crotches and sniffing their fingers before taking your order (basically just GABE). Sometimes they thrust at you if they think you've ordered something the cook won't spit in.

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

That's the weirdest, most hilarious association of ideas I've ever heard. XD

>>(basically just GABE)
Well, Gabe was quite the typical Italian, yes.

[angrylogic.livejournal.com]

Lol, they're not weird to me XD I have strange word associations. Every time I think of Elvis, the first thing I think of is ravioli :\ And when someone says "olive oil", I think of a wooden spoon.

[polarforscherin.livejournal.com]

Amazing ad. XD

Be careful, fellow Italians, be careful...
You really should, I know a lot of people who learned Italian because it's chic nowadays. :D

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

Oh, so it's chic now. Buono a sapersi... ( = good to know) XD

[polarforscherin.livejournal.com]

They want to show their skills when they're on vacation. XD

My father started to learn Italian to, but he was too lazy. But he's never too lazy to remind me that he still knows: "Il conto, per favore." *rofl*

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

HAHA, I could teach you something if you want to impress him. XD

[polarforscherin.livejournal.com]

Maybe he starts again, he'll be retired soon and needs new challenges. XD

I told him to learn English first, because it's easier. He always wanted to travel to Cornwall, so that would be a beginning. ;D

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

Well, having German as native language, English is much easier to learn than Italian. Unless he already learned Spanish or French?

[polarforscherin.livejournal.com]

My father? XD

There were no foreign languages when he was in school. He went to school in the 1950s and they usually spend eight years there, then went to work, so no time for things like that. He was 14 when he started his work for the city council, he still does today.

There was just English, normally Latin, for those who visited a secondary school afterwards.

[gothikmaus.livejournal.com]

Pretty much like my parents. In the '40s and '50s only elementary school was compulsory (5 years) and you only learned Italian. Which was difficult enough, as no one spoke Italian at home, only dialect. My mother went on studying for another three years after that and learned French, but she forgot most of it because she never really got to use it.