The Big Feast (1973)

Having organised a lavish gastronomic seminar right under everyone's noses, grizzled friends and members of the professional bourgeoisie--chef Ugo, a restaurant owner; international libertine Marcello, an Alitalia pilot; refined Michel, a successful television producer; and sheltered Philippe, a venerable magistrate--gather for a weekend of debaucherous fun at a Parisian villa. As truckloads of the finest meat and wine arrive, the four companions prepare for a Romanesque banquet; however, something is missing. And before long, three elegant prostitutes join the eclectic quartet of hungry epicures. Now the stage seems set for a magnificent, unrestrained, Bacchanalian feast. After all, the extravagant hedonists are bent on carrying out their morbid secret plan to the letter. But how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.—Nick Riganas