The Birds, the Bees and the Italians

Toni Gasparini confides to Dr. Castellan that he has been impotent for several months. The confession is intended to lower Castellan's guard regarding his lively wife Noemi. This disclosure plants the seeds of Toni's scheme and starts the chain of gossip that follows.

Castellan shares Toni's confession with his circle of friends, turning private vulnerability into public amusement. The rumor travels quickly, eroding trust and inviting suspicion around Noemi. Toni's scheme quietly gains momentum as gossip circulates.

After a party, Castellan and others continue the night of revelry at a nightclub, while Toni accompanies Noemi home. The events blur as secrets circulate among the revelers and the couple's proximity raises questions. The scene marks a transition from whispered rumors to concrete action.

A friend who had witnessed Toni's escapade about ten days earlier reveals the detail to the group. The revelation contradicts Toni's carefully cultivated control and intensifies suspicions about Noemi and the others. The timing underscores how rumors from the past intrude on the present.

Castellan rushes home, but arrives too late to stop Noemi from being seduced. To preserve his own honor, he hides the incident from the group and the wider community. The infamous line 'and let it stay between us' echoes his determination to keep appearances intact.

In Rezega, the circle doubles down on preserving appearances, effectively cementing a 'no cuckold' code. The gossip becomes a shield that keeps the real events from surfacing. Toni's maneuvering continues under the protective cover of mutual discretion.

Osvaldo Bisigato, a modest bank employee, contemplates eloping with Milena Zulian, the bar cashier, hoping to begin a new life away from his resentful wife. He imagines escaping social norms that frown on separation. The very idea triggers a broader response from the town's moral defenders.

The social order rejects separation, and the entire town—Gilda's cousin Ippolita, the so-called friends, the employer, the parish priest, and the carabinieri commander—coerces Bisigato to reconsider. They create pressure to maintain the sanctity of marriage and to preserve the status quo. The plan to elope collapses under communal intervention.

Don Schiavon persuades Milena to depart Rezega to avoid scandal. Milena complies, and her departure marks a quiet retreat from the center of the town's gossip. This move underscores the town's power to regulate personal choices through social pressure.

Following the failed elopement, Bisigato makes a suicide attempt and spends time in a clinic. When he returns, he is subdued and resigned, having accepted the community's demand to stay and conform. The episode highlights the crushing weight of collective judgment.

Alda Cristofoletto, a pale and striking young girl, arrives in town and draws the attention of the group of womanizers. The following day, Bepi Cristofoletto reports them for corruption of a minor, sparking a local scandal. The community acts to minimize the damage by silencing the press.

To shield the town from the scandal, magnates and religious authorities silence the local press, urging reporter Tosato to erase names from the article. Ippolita then convinces Cristofoletto to withdraw his complaint, offering money and aiming to control the flow of funds for 'mediation.' The episode demonstrates how power brokers shape truth to protect reputations and finances.