Edoardo Pesce makes physical intimidation horribly convincing, though the writing does not always give him enough beyond it. We recommend his frightening work in Dogman, without assuming that playing the bully is all he has to offer.
Fi1m perspective
Beside Marcello Fonte in Dogman (2018), Edoardo Pesce makes it immediately clear which of the two men has reason to be afraid. His Simoncino is frightening enough for Marcello’s submission to seem understandable, at least at first. We found their encounters difficult to watch because their physical contrast makes Pesce’s threat so convincing and Fonte gives the smaller man such tenderness. Director Matteo Garrone gets considerable force from putting the two actors together. Pesce bulked up for the part, and that physical preparation matters whenever they share the screen.
That casting followed a long run of tough-guy roles. Playing Ruggero Buffoni in Romanzo criminale - La serie (2008–2010) brought television notice and helped establish the pattern. There were supporting film parts in Viva l’Italia (2012) and God Willing (2015), then the abusive husband Franco in Fortunata (2017), before Dogman brought wider recognition. The danger with such repeated casting is that the actor can become a quick way for a film to announce trouble. Pesce gives Garrone the necessary threat, but the script needs to offer him something beyond it.
Ugo Chiti, Massimo Gaudioso and Garrone’s writing draws Simoncino so narrowly that we begin to anticipate what each encounter will require of him. Pesce supplies the menace forcefully; the problem is how often menace is enough for the film. Marcello’s continuing loyalty becomes harder to account for, even when his fear remains persuasive. We still rate Dogman as a good, affecting crime drama, largely because the uneasy bond between the men makes its cruelty matter. A more fully written Simoncino would have made that bond more convincing.
His subsequent work gives some grounds for looking beyond the bully. In the satirical series Boris (2022), he plays Tatti Barletta, while El Paraíso (2023) gives him a role in a story concerned with dependency and family ties. Comedy is part of his work too, and need not be treated as a holiday from the serious business of frightening people. We would like to see more parts that ask something other than whether the smaller man will stand up to him. Start with Dogman, but do not take Simoncino for the limit of what Pesce can do.
Biography
Edoardo Pesce is an Italian actor born on 12 September 1979 in Rome. He trained at the Ribalte school directed by Enzo Garinei and subsequently at the Teatro Azione school. He began his career on stage before gaining notice in television series including Romanzo criminale (2008–2010), in which he played Ruggero Buffoni, and I Cesaroni.
Pesce is known for film roles such as Mazzone in Viva l'Italia (2012), Gianni Malloni in God Willing (2015), Franco in Fortunata (2017) and Simoncino in Dogman (2018). For the latter he received the David di Donatello for Best Supporting Actor in 2019 and a Nastro d'Argento. Other credits include appearances in My Brilliant Friend and …Watch Out, We're Mad (2022).
