Sicilian Ghost Story

In a small Sicialian town, Luna (Julia Jedlikowska), a teenage schoolgirl is infatuated with one of her classmates, Giuseppe (Gaetano Fernandez). After he disappears she experiences visions that suggest that he is in danger, but her concerns are met with silence from the local community. Only a handful of friends join her in the search. She attempts to use her visions to trace him.

The film is based off the real life kidnapping of Giuseppe Di Matteo in 1993 who was kidnapped by the Mafia to silence his father. He was held for over 700 days before he was murdered. The film drifts between fantasy and reality, often disarming the viewer. A genuinely haunting film, especially at the film's conclusion it has a dreamlike aesthetic to it.

Sicilian Ghost Story: A tale of young love, kidnapping and horror; a new take on the "Mafia Film" set in a Sicilian town. Luna (Julia Jedlikowska) is in love withe 13 year old classmate Giuseppe (Gaetano Fernandez), they teasingly play in the forest, when a dog threatens Luna he protects her, losing his schoolbag. When Giuseppe disappears Luna is forlorn, thinking he just abandoned her but it is soon revealed that he was kidnapped by the Mafia as his father, also a mafiosi is cooperating with the authorities.

Locals do not want to discuss it and there is a consensual myth even at the school that the boy is ill. Luna won't stop looking for him, even producing leaflets about his disappearance. Her parents fear that this will draw the attention of the gangsters and the town police don't want to be reminded of the reality.

Much more than a gangster film this tale develops as Luna seems to forge a psychic bond with Giuseppe, seeing him in captivity, viewing where he will be moved to. Giuseppe is also aware of that link and undergoes out of body experiences as he falls ill whilst in captivity. As the film progresses the supernatural elements build towards to a climax which threatens to provide a Romeo and Juliet ending.

Some terrible scenes of cruelty, violence and horror. In the forest sequences there is a sense of primeval panic as the sparse trees seem to close in looking like bars in a prison cell. Great performances by Julia and Gaetano. Written and directed by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza this is truly a powerful tale of love conquering fear and indifference. 9/10.

The title is a bit of a misnomer, as SICILIAN GHOST STORY is a lyrical drama Co-Directed and Co-Written by the team of Fabio Grassandonia and Antonio Piazza. Inspired by the true story of the disappearance of a teenage boy in 1993, the movie isn't a documentation of the case as much as it takes off from the memories of that incident. Grassandonia and Piazza transform those memories into a Romeo & Juliet style fable, even though the lovers here kiss but once. Luna (Julia Jedikowska) and Giussppe (Gaetano Fernandez) have no sooner come together when they are violently thrust apart (needless to say, a certain Sicilian organized crime group is involved). The Directors take a while to build to what they are aiming for. The actors are good with Jedikowska being particularly winsome and determined. Once the movie's phantasmagorical aspects come to the fore, the second half gains its footing. The Directors were fortunate to pair up with a couple of master Director Paolo Sorrentino's (THE GREAT BEAUTY, YOUTH) collaborators in Critiano Travaglioli (editing) and Luca Bigazzi (cinematography) and they assist immeasurably in fulfilling their vision. The locations are well-chosen, including the key Agrigento ruins. While not the horror film the title promises, SICILIAN GHOST STORY is an engrossing tale of its own. It very much plays like the kind of legend the island locales might tell years from now. The one about the girl who loved too much.

Poetic, bitter, mixing fairy tale atmosphere and slices of captivity, using the eyes of young actors, the gestures of adults, the map of teenager world as lead ingredients of a touchinng, impressive film about a victim and about a love story and about Mafia. A film giving not exactly a pledge or a portrait of crime. But wise picture of fall. About cruelty , about vulnerability, about silence, about dreams. Nothing new. But useful. Maybe, for the right manner to say a profound dark truth.

This movie reminded me of Pan's Labyrinth. Few films show children trying to cope with the loss of a loved one, it was interesting to see how they differ from adults. The cinematography and acting were top notch. I am obsessed with the song "Stay With Me" from the soundtrack by Soap&Skin. The movie stays with you long after the credits have finished rolling.