The Postman

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The Postman

PG

1995

1h 56m

Romance

Biography

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

92%

Tomatometer

105 Reviews

94%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Mario Ruoppolo, the mailman on an Italian island, pines from afar for a beautiful waitress. But when exiled Chilean poet Pablo Neruda comes to live on the island, Ruoppolo delivers Neruda's mail and picks up lessons on love, life and poetry.

Critics Consensus

The Postman movingly explores themes of love and friendship through sensitively depicted -- and beautifully acted -- relationships in 1950s Italy.

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Elizabeth Renzetti

Globe and Mail

1d

3.5/4

Gazing at the surface, it would seem to have "dogerrel" written all over it. By some wondrous alchemy -- the same process that joins dull words and turns them into poetry -- the disparate parts have been fashioned into a sublime whole.

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Derek Elley

Variety

1d

Troisi gives a warm, ironic performance to treasure. But with little extra assist from Radford’s by-the-numbers direction, and a script that starts to become very diffused about halfway through, the bottom line is it’s a performance in a vacuum.

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Jami Bernard

New York Daily News

1d

4/4

The Postman applauds the power of art while bridging the stubborn gulf between the simple and the erudite.

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Marylynn Uricchio

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

1d

4/4

The Postman is a splendid movie, gentle and warm as a Mediterranean breeze.

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Jack Garner

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

1d

9/10

It's a film about the sensuous metaphors and magnetism of poetry. But its lyrical beauty is laced with sadness for those who know the story behind the film.

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Mo S.

@9mr_0 Dec 7

لطيف جدا و القصه جميله لكن قرات ان بطل العمل مات ايضا في الحياه الواقعيه

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Alec B

@Alec97 10/13/2023

Slightly charming but this is typical Miramax awards bait.

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Leaburn O

04/11/2023

This film was charming 👍🏼

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Mark A

12/16/2022

An engaging, small foreign film.

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Jorge M

@Jorge199999 09/04/2022

photography on this is beautiful and the story very well told

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isla s

09/01/2022

I thought this was a lovely, charming film. It has some nice scenery and delightful characters. I enjoyed the explanations of metaphors and poetry, how they can be used to help express feelings and the like. Its got a bit of a slow plot I suppose but its not all about the plot - the setting and philosophical angles are very nice. I particularly like the titular character, the postman Mario Ruoppolo - a quite shy and reserved, yet curious person who slowly becomes more and more interested in the poets life and understanding of his profession as a writer. I also liked that there is a subtle social political side to it as well, in terms of the reactions by older generations to what happens - it gives the film, whats explained, a deeper meaning I feel somehow. I won't elaborate so as not to provide any unnecessary spoilers. I thought it didn't seem too 'up itself' and I very much enjoyed watching it, so I'd recommend it to others.

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Michael Radford

Director

Massimo Troisi

Mario Ruoppolo

Philippe Noiret

Pablo Neruda

Maria Grazia Cucinotta

Beatrice Russo

Linda Moretti

Donna Rosa

Renato Scarpa

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Synopsis

Mario Ruoppolo, the mailman on an Italian island, pines from afar for a beautiful waitress. But when exiled Chilean poet Pablo Neruda comes to live on the island, Ruoppolo delivers Neruda's mail and picks up lessons on love, life and poetry.

Director: Michael Radford
Producer: Gaetano Daniele, Vittorio Cecchi Gori, Mario Cecchi Gori
Screenwriter: Anna Pavignano, Michael Radford, Furio Scarpelli, Giacomo Scarpelli, Antonio Skármeta, Massimo Troisi
Distributor: Miramax Films
Production Co: Miramax, Cecchi Gori Group Tiger Cinema
Rating: PG
Genre: Romance, Biography, Comedy, Drama
Original Language: Italian
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 14, 1995, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 17, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $17.1M
Runtime: 1h 56m
Sound Mix: Surround

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