The Traitor

"The Traitor" (2019 release from Italy; 145 min.) brings the story of Tommaso Buscetta. As the movie opens, it is "4 March 1980, Palermo", and the heads of various Mafia crime families are gathered to celebrate the patron day of Saint Rosalia, and making a toast "for the peace that must never end". They all gather for a group photo, and before we know it, the killings start to happen. We then go to "December 1980, Rio de Janeiro", where Buscetta has resettled so as to avoid the families' infighting, but to no avail, as one day he gets a call from someone back in Italy: "don't you remember who I am?". At this point we are less than 15 min. into the movie, but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this is the latest film from legendary Italian writer/director Marco Bellocchio, a/k/a the Italian Martin Scorsese, and now a crisp 80 years young. Here he brings an epic Mafia crime drama about one of the first Mafia bosses who'd betray and become a "pentito" (literally, a "repentant"). This is a plot-heavy movie and hence I'm not going to say much more about the story line. But I will say this: the movie contains lots and lots of violence, not surprisingly. The movie's overall tone and approach is gritty and terse, making for compelling viewing if you like that sort of thing. And yes, the 2 hrs. 20 min. are needed as Bellocchio looks at many different characters (which at first is a bit confusing if not intimidating). The movie hence features a large ensemble cast, none of which were previously familiar to me (and in a way that is not a bad thing). Kudos also to the excellent photography.

"The Traitor" premiered at last year's Cannes film festival to positive acclaim, and is currently rated a very respectable 76% certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie opened out of the blue on 2 screens this past weekend and I didn't hesitate as I'm guessing this will have a very limited US theater run. Indeed, the Sunday early evening showing where I saw this at was attended dismally (3 people including myself). If you like a tough Mafia crime drama (and you know who you are!), I'd readily suggest you check this out, be it in the theater (if you still can), on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.