Scipio the African

Scipio the African (Italian: Scipione detto anche l'Africano) is a 1971 Italian comedy film directed by Luigi Magni. Starring Marcello Mastroianni and Silvana Mangano, the film revisits the life and times of the celebrated Roman general Scipio Africanus through a satirical lens. Rather than presenting an heroic epic, it approaches Roman history with irony, poking fun at political intrigue and the myths built around great leaders. Magni also wrote the screenplay, and the picture belongs to the tradition of Italian historical comedies of the period, blending period settings with a knowingly comic tone.