The film is bathed in a warm, golden aesthetic typical of Tinto Brass’s work, capturing a romanticized version of mid-century Italy.
Today, Monella is not discussed in the same breath as Fellini or Antonioni. It belongs to a different, messier, more pulpy cinematic family. It sits on the shelf next to John Waters’ Female Trouble , Russ Meyer’s Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! , and Pedro Almodóvar’s Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown . Monella -1998-