Okay, fellow tape travelers, let’s rewind to a very specific corner of the 80s rental store – maybe tucked away in the "Foreign Comedy" section, maybe misfiled under "Action" because someone saw a fast car on the box. We're talking about Enrico Oldoini's Yuppies 2 from 1986, a film that arrived so quickly after its predecessor it practically tripped over its own Armani loafers. If the first Yuppies captured the aspirational, often absurd, spirit of mid-80s Milanese upward mobility, this sequel cranks the espresso machine up to eleven and points it directly at the ski slopes of Cortina d'Ampezzo.
### Faster Than a Speeding Fiat
Seriously, let's talk speed. Yuppies - I giovani di successo hit Italian screens in early 1986. Yuppies 2 landed before the same year was out, just in time for Christmas. Talk about striking while the iron was hot! This rapid turnaround is a quintessential "Retro Fun Fact" about the film – it speaks volumes about the confidence the producers had in the formula and the hunger audiences had for this specific brand of comedy. Enrico Oldoini, who also helmed the first film (and would later give us other Italian hits), clearly knew exactly what buttons to push, reassembling his core cast for another round of frantic misadventures.
### The Gang's All Here (and More Manic Than Ever)
And what a cast! If you saw the first one, you knew what you were getting into. Massimo Boldi, Jerry Calà, Christian De Sica, and Ezio Greggio aren't just actors here; they're comedic forces of nature, each embodying a particular flavor of the titular "Yuppie." De Sica (son of the legendary Vittorio De Sica, adding a fascinating layer of Italian cinema lineage) often plays the slightly smoother, more conniving operator. Boldi brings his signature explosive, almost cartoonish physical comedy. Calà delivers the laid-back charm and opportunistic sleaze, while Greggio (already a huge TV star in Italy with Striscia la notizia) leans into goofy absurdity. Their chemistry, honed across multiple films together, is undeniable. They bounce off each other with the practiced ease of a seasoned comedy troupe, even when the gags themselves are utterly preposterous. The plot, such as it is, involves our four protagonists heading to the posh ski resort of Cortina for the Christmas holidays, leading to tangled romantic pursuits, mistaken identities, farcical situations involving wealth (or the appearance of it), and plenty of snow-bound slapstick.
### An Avalanche of 80s Excess
Forget subtlety. Yuppies 2 is a full-on immersion heater dropped into a fondue pot of 1986 Italian style. The fashion! The hairstyles! The shoulder pads that could double as personal flotation devices! It’s all gloriously, unapologetically of its time. Watching it now is like unearthing a time capsule filled with Paninaro subculture vibes, synth-pop soundtracks, and an almost aggressive pursuit of la bella figura. The locations in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy's glitzy winter playground, aren't just backdrops; they're characters in themselves, amplifying the themes of wealth, status, and the slightly desperate need to be seen having a good time. Remember those incredibly bright, geometric-patterned ski suits? Yeah, they're here in force.
This film is a prime example of what Italians call cinepanettone – comedies traditionally released during the Christmas season, often featuring the same stable of actors in vacation settings, indulging in broad, sometimes crude, but massively popular humor. Oldoini didn't invent the genre, but Yuppies and its rapid sequel certainly helped solidify its box office dominance throughout the late 80s and 90s. These films were critic-proof phenomena in Italy, consistently packing cinemas despite often lukewarm reviews. Finding a worn VHS copy felt like uncovering a slightly guilty, very energetic pleasure.
### Laughing All the Way to the Bank
Does the humor translate perfectly? Maybe not always. It relies heavily on fast-paced dialogue (which can suffer in translation or subtitles), frantic physical comedy, and situations rooted in the specific social anxieties and aspirations of 80s Italy. There are moments that feel dated, certainly, but the sheer energy carries it a long way. It's not sophisticated satire, but it's delivered with such gusto by the cast that it's hard not to get swept up in the silliness. Think of it less like a carefully crafted Hollywood comedy and more like a chaotic, wine-fueled holiday dinner with your loudest relatives – exhausting, maybe a bit much, but undeniably memorable.
The production itself embraced the chaos. Stories abound of quick shoots, improvised lines, and leveraging the natural beauty (and social scene) of Cortina to maximum effect. It wasn't about crafting high art; it was about delivering laughs, fast and frequently, tapping directly into the zeitgeist of Berlusconi-era optimism and consumerism. And commercially, it was a massive success in its home country, proving the cinepanettone formula was pure gold.
***
VHS Heaven Rating: 6/10
Justification: While undeniably dated and perhaps bewildering to outsiders unfamiliar with the cinepanettone tradition, Yuppies 2 scores points for its sheer, unadulterated 80s energy, the undeniable chemistry of its core cast (Boldi, Calà, De Sica, Greggio), and its status as a fascinating cultural artifact. It's loud, silly, and visually a blast of retro excess. The humor is broad and occasionally misses the mark across cultural lines, and the plot is wafer-thin, but its historical context as a rapid-fire sequel and genre staple gives it extra nostalgic weight. It loses points for lack of depth and reliance on very specific cultural humor, but gains them back for sheer manic commitment.
Final Thought: Yuppies 2 is like finding that ridiculously patterned ski jacket buried deep in the closet – objectively a bit much, maybe slightly embarrassing, but slipping it on instantly transports you back to a specific, wildly energetic time. Pure, unfiltered 80s Italian froth.