Nostalgia

It's a cross section of the human lives, memories dissolved in miseries give birth to the bittersweet Nostalgia. A powerful beautiful tale about a man revisiting the memories he wanted to forget. Such clever sincere heartfelt performances by the cast the weight people carry on shoulders, the weight of guilt is animated well by Favino. Cinematography is excellent, great work in capturing the beauty of the Naples. It's a slow burn with subtle daramtic nature, the abrupt conclusion after the long anticipated pounce of the badman was an excellent way to draw the curtains. It's a well written critique on naivety driven by selfishness.

It's a really beautiful movie, especially the visuals. You don't see the typical Napoli, the one from the post cards or the tourism agencies. Instead you see the real one, the poor families, the mafia, the struggle, and most importantly, the desire of the people to survive. It felt so real, I never lived what the characters went through but at some moments, it really felt like the things on screen had happened to me before. The writing is also really good, the way the elements are brought is not heavy, and even if we don't have all the cards to understand at the beginning, we don't feel left out. Things we see at the beginning of the movie make sense when they happen, and even more sense once we get the full picture. It was also refreshing to see bits of Arabic culture, instead of having a really cliché view of it. I loved watching it, but i think if i had to watch it on my own, instead that at the movie theater, I wouldn't have been 100% focused on it and I guess I would have been bored at some point. Despite that, I still recommend it.

This is a plot which has already been used before: the lead character who comes back home after many years away and who suddenly finds out all the changes that occured during his - or her - absence. Italian movies have already given us such topics: FORGET PALERMO. Or French LE FILS from Pierre Granier Deferra, starring Yves Montand. More or less same scheme. This movie which I review now is full of nostaligia, as its title says, It is not a crime film, but a drama with some social elements about Italy today. With of course the Mafia and church influence on the Italian society. It is rather dark, a bit gloomy but beautiful, really worth the view. Flawless acting and directing too; excellent camera work.

Pierfrancesco Favino is "Felice", who returns to his native Naples to find his elderly mother "Teresa" (Aurora Quattrocchi) living in a basement apartment, rarely washing and taking much care of herself. He determines to hang around and help her get back on her feet whilst at the same time working with the local priest "Luigi" (Francesco Di Leva) to reunite with his childhood friend "Spasiano" (Tommaso Ragno) who has meantime become the elusive local criminal kingpin. It has been many a year since "Felice" could consider himself a local, and the city is largely new and unfamiliar to him, as is the angry and violent criminal fraternity that holds much of the place in it's grip. Can he meet and reconcile with his erstwhile friend? Is he even safe to do so? This is a great looking film capturing well the beauty and the turmoil of this ancient city whilst director Mario Martone offers us a chance to relive some of the memories this, now Muslim and married, visitor recalls as he retraces many of the steps of his childhood. There is very little joy in this film, it's a rather depressing affair that at times really does labour the despair facing many in this community. That's not to say it isn't worth watching, but after a while I felt drained and a bit confused before an ending that I couldn't quite get my head around. Anger? Spite? Pity, even? It's a long watch and I probably wouldn't ever watch it again - but I am glad that I did, once.

Home is where the heart is?

The protagonist of this beautiful Italian film is hunting for what once was. Pierfrancesco Favino plays Felice, who returns to his hometown of Naples after 40 years. He finds that the city has not changed since he hastily left there as a 15-year-old. Well, that's what he believes and his naive upbringing of his hometown is conveyed to us as viewers. We would like to believe him. But sense problems. Felice almost ran away after a serious incident involving both him and his best friend growing up. The filmmakers take a long time to tell us what happened, and I won't give away anything here.

The film shows with insight what different path choices do to people over time. It's just that the protagonist fails to take this perspective into account. He longs to return to something that no longer exists.

The film is slow and lingering. Beautifully photographed. Excellent acting performances from all the cast. I understand very well that this was Italy's Oscar candidate the year it came out.

Watch it because you want to see Naples through the eyes and feelings of the main character. Watch it because it's something different from 90 percent of what goes on in theaters and is streamed. Here are real emotions, hope, longing and sadness.