How old is the car? If it's 1989 or later it will have the Marelli ignition. You can identify this by the distributor cap being smaller than the older ones with 2 rings of 6 leads instead of the old one having one ring of 12. It also has 2 square coils on top of each other instead of cylindrical ones.
If it is Marelli ignition then one explanation is that the carbon contact on the top of the distributor rotor has worn out so that the one side does not get any spark at all. This is quite common and often the cause of engine fires on cars with catalytic converters.
The Marelli ignition system effectively works as two 6 cylinder systems although they both go through the same distributor. Check the coils, HT leads and the amplifiers on the radiator top rail.
If your car has cats DO NOT run it with any kind of misfire - or have a fire extinguisher close to hand!
Of course, if your car does not have Marelli ignition all of the above is a waste of time!!
Good luck and hope this helps!!!