Film Review – The Big Fake

January 26th, 2026 | POSTED BY Allen Almachar

Despite looking great, the Italian film The Big Fake (2026) covers too familiar a path without adding enough of a twist to stand on its own. From its visuals, characters, rhythms, and tones, the narrative is too derivative of other historical crime dramas. In that way, the title might be its most accurate element. Not only is this the story of a person who uses their artistic skills for counterfeiting and forgery, but the film itself is reminiscent of other, better projects. This might have worked more effectively as a satire of the crime genre. But alas, that is not the picture we get. Instead, this is a straight-forward tale that paints by numbers. It shows a lot of flash but not much beyond the surface level. 

To be fair, the surfaces are appealing. Director Stefano Lodovichi (along with screenwriter Sandro Petraglia) transports us to Rome of the 1970s. Emanuele Pasquet’s cinematography constructs this world with heavy doses of warm yellows and browns – a visual palette common in period pieces. While I am no expert on Italian history, Lodovichi’s film suggests the timeframe was one of cultural transition. We get the highly stylized outfits and hairdos young people wore while frequenting night clubs. Yet at the same time, this was also the era of social unrest, with both criminal organizations and political extremists being a constant presence. Real-life people and events are integrated into the narrative, including the kidnapping of former Italian prime minister Aldo Moro. The historical accuracy of all this is unclear. The trailer says this is “Falsely Inspired by a True Story,” which means we should probably take what we see with a grain of salt.

Our lead character is a young artist named Toni (Pietro Castellitto). Tired of painting landscapes of his provincial life, Toni travels to Rome in hopes of striking it big. He goes on his adventure with his friends: the “worker” Fabione (Pierluigi Gigante) and priest Vittorio (Andrea Arcangeli). Not long after arriving, Toni finds himself in the shadier side of the city. He begins an affair with an art dealer, Donata (Giulia Michelini) who discovers that he has the unique ability to copy paintings down to the finest detail. Apparently, there is an underground market for skillfully made forgeries, and Toni uses this opportunity to make some fast cash. But one domino leads to another. Toni’s initially dreams being a successful artist is replaced by him being a sought-after forger, making counterfeits of everything from signatures to highly classified paperwork. This gets him further down into the depths of society, eventually collaborating with rival militant groups and secret government agencies. Toni’s allegiance goes to anyone that will pay him, which gets him into hot water.

In terms of style, The Big Fake has some engaging and energized sequences. This is especially true early on, as Toni makes his way up the ladder. The editing (Roberto Di Tanna) incorporates breathless montages of Toni creating his forgeries, he and Donata strolling their way into parties and decorating their lavish home – pop and rock music accompanying them along the way. There is a clear parallel to Goodfellas (1990) in how wealth and status are intoxicating. The temptation to break the law to make loads of money is like a drug, and Toni fully commits himself to the habit. As things shift into the second half, the consequences of Toni’s actions come to the foreground. His willingness to cooperate with anyone – whether it be criminals or secret agents – entangles him in a web of his own creation.

Lodovichi’s direction creates striking imagery. Unfortunately, the big hindrance lies in the character work. The motivations and emotions of everyone we meet fall flat. No one is all that interesting to follow. Toni himself is the prime example. Pietro Castellitto gives a strong performance. His long hair, thick mustache, and large eyes lend to a fascinating character design. However, the writing is not strong enough to make Toni more than that. He’s kind of a blank canvass, going through the ups and downs of his storyline in a machine-like manner. We don’t get much of his thoughts about being an artist turned criminal, why he is so quick to illegally recreate art, or why he’s so eager to help or backstab everyone within his circle. Maybe there’s a larger question to be asked: Is Toni’s lack of loyalty a survival tactic? Perhaps he is the “Big Fake.” Sadly, the writing does not go deep enough to explore this. In Goodfellas, there was no mistaking that the characters were bad guys, and that the entire film was a comment on how corruption and capitalism can breed criminal behavior. The same cannot be said about The Big Fake. Toni is the protagonist, but he is too much of a bland figure for us to care about his fate.

The lack of dimension and nuance is more glaring when compared to his friends Fabione and Vittorio. Both are treated as supporting players, but their respective stories are good enough to warrant expansion. For Fabione, he decided to join an extremist group known as “The Red Brigade” soon after arriving in Rome. His onscreen appearances usually involve asking Toni for a favor. I kept wondering what exploits Fabione got into whenever he wasn’t on screen. Vittorio is an even more noteworthy character, given that he is in the priesthood. He is a person who preaches doing the right thing and living under God’s influence, but he is more than willing to accept donations from questionable characters to renovate his church or purchase a more suitable car to drive. How Vittorio compromises himself against the morality of his job makes for intriguing drama, but the narrative doesn’t go far enough in that direction. Instead, Fabione and Vittorio are relegated to mere participants to Toni’s central scheme.

The Big Fake is well made and has plenty of production value. But beyond its craft, it doesn’t offer much from a human perspective. We don’t need characters that are super complex or stories that present large existential questions about life – I don’t think this is that kind of movie. But there must be something that holds us – that makes us want to travel on these character’s journeys. That’s where the film stumbles. It plays a song we have heard too many times. It doesn’t give us enough of a reason to go down this road one more time.

Andrea Aracangeli, Emanuele Pasquet, Giulia Michelini, Goodfellas, Pierluigi Gigante, Pietro Castellitto, Roberto Di Tanna, Sandro Petraglia, Stefano Lodovichi, The Big Fake