"Il traditore", which of course means "The Traitor", is a new Italian Italian-language movie. Or is it really? Partially I'd say. It premiered in 2019 already, other countries got delayed because of the pandemic, and there are many other production countries credited here and also several other languages, even if really most of it is in Italian. So no surprise that thise film was the huge winner at the most recent big national film award ceremony in Italy. Which also means, it got picked to represent Italy at the Oscars, but came short and dit not make the final short list, let alone the nominations. Maybe one reason is why this is a truly slow film, especially early on at times. It runs for a massive 2.5 hours (yes I know another very long film won the Oscar for Italy not too long ago), even minimally over, and I must say there are moments when it drags more than just a bit. Maybe I was just a bit tired early on, but I can't deny that the first 30 or even 45 minutes felt exttremely slow and I would not have given three stars out of five for these. Certainly not. But luckily, things get more tense, more interesting and just better in general in the second half. Actually, from the second third onwards even. I think one problem I had with all this early on as that it was still gruff with the shooting of all these characters there, but you did not really know who they were. You did not really know who the shooters were. So there was just no connection whatsoever and it did not feel deep or inspired as a consequence. I mean taking lives is something drastic and tragic, but if you have no clue what is going on and who is who, then it is almost impossible nonetheless to really feel something. So yeah, the introduction to it all could have been handled better or maybe I was just too tired, but the longer the movie went, the more it grew on me and with the lengthy courtroom sequence it certainly had drawn me in eventually. So I am glad the protagonist's attempt to take his own life inside the plane(?) with this poison did not turn out successful. Because then the film would have ended at a point where it really shouldn't have. The courtroom sequence was certainly amomng the best courtroom sequences from recent years to me. I mean what a mess going on there and I do not only mean the audience's excalamations, but also the constant denying about who knows who, the guy who is naked suddenly, the guy who stitched together his lips to make a far bigger statement than his lips could, the guy who is suddenly naked and so on. Most of all how everybody is so eager about cross examinations, but after the first does not go so well for the defense, they do not wannt to do them anymore. This specific scene there with Ferracane also made him remember me easily. A bit surprised to see that he lost the Italian Film Award to another supporting actor from this film here, one I did not consider too memorable at all. Same applies to Maria Amato, who was also nominated. Wait, is she really Bud Spencer's widow? Okay cool. Then I have to go easy on her. Love the man. Back to this film here, anybody else thought there were many actors in here who resembled slightly famous American actors. Like John Slattery, the guy who palys Eli Gold on "The Good Wife", Woody Harrelson (I Think), the dude from "The Walking Dead" yes Andrew Lincoln and maybe one or two others. Sorry, very random, probably just me.
One thing I need to say here is that while watching this film I was a bit surprised how there are really not too many films about Mafia (or Cosa Nostra) from Italy anymore as you could think there were. I mean we here in Germany are constantly getting films about the GDR, the relentless government there, the RAF sometimes too, so I would think that such a crucial subject from Italy's political history should be featured more frequently. But maybe it helped this movie that they did not feel there are not really any more stories left to be told and this explains the film's success. I mean it was a good film all in all, but the awards recognition and nominations sometimes were a bit too much perhaps. Also at Cannes Film Festival. Howw can anybody else there get in than the male lead. And so random this female submission too. Never heard of lead actor Pierfrancesco Favino before though, who physically reminded me a bit of Benicio del Toro. Certainly my loss. He is good and sometimes it feels pretty impressive how he carried the film from beginning to end. I mean he always gets help from the supporting cast, but still does a marvellous job at times. One scene that was basically only him is when he is at that supermarket and kinda worried somebody could show up and kill him too like with the prestigious judge earlier. So he buys the gun. A lot of the suspene in the final quarter of them film is linked to whether he will live or die (through somebody else's hand) and as this film is based on actual characters and stories, you could not be sure at all. A 50-50 matter. But yes, I wrote spoilers included, so he lives in the end and dies from old age apparently, but he never really feels safe anymore which we know through seeing him constantly on the roof up there with his gun for protection right near him. He even sleeps up there. These references about actual characters like Buscetta are why I think this is an especially crucial watch for Italian and those are the ones that I recommend it to the most. But also non-Italians like myself can have a good time seeing this one here. or a haunting time maybe even. There are some psychologically shocking moments like when we see the woman outside the helicopter and they use her and threaten to kill her to get information out of him. This shot definitely stays in the mind, almost epic. Others that were painful to watch (not because they were bad, certainly not) include the one when the two sons are brutally strangled. Or those recurring recordings of prison inmates going literally insane in these very small chambers and you can tell from the way they walk in there. (Just like with animals who have too little space. There's a scientific term for that even I think.) Or behave. Definitely helps in staying on the right side of the law this movie. Okay what else can I add. Yeah well, do not doze off in the first 35 minutes and you are in for a solid treat. I must still say the film was not really on a level where I would want to watch it anytime soon again unfortunately. Once is enough maybe. Oh yes, one I have not mentioned yet at all is Marco Bellocchio. Shame on me, also in terms of how I have not seen too much from his gigantic body of work that received so much awards recognition. He's been in the film industry for 60 years now, turned 80 in under a year and while he was not retired or so, he made a big comeback with this movie after focusing on short films recently in the years before that. Well, this film is anything but short. Maybe his experience and that he witnessed all those Buscetta events in person as he was not just alive, but also conscious back then, helped with this film too and how realistic it feels. Yes he is just a co-writer here and several other people worked on the screenplay, but that is nothing unusual either. By the way, anybody also getting Buscetta and Bruscetta mixed up? Probably no Italians would. And also no non-Italians that speak the language. Okay, I am drifting away now, so I shall leave it at that. It is almost a must-see if you like Mafia films. (No I know Mafia does not exist. Thanks for telling me.) But it is not really a film that will get you interested in the genre. If you wanna go for it, please don#t expect Godfather level. The overall outcome here gets a cautious thumbs-up from me. No enthusiasm, but I am still glad I got to see it.
One thing I need to say here is that while watching this film I was a bit surprised how there are really not too many films about Mafia (or Cosa Nostra) from Italy anymore as you could think there were. I mean we here in Germany are constantly getting films about the GDR, the relentless government there, the RAF sometimes too, so I would think that such a crucial subject from Italy's political history should be featured more frequently. But maybe it helped this movie that they did not feel there are not really any more stories left to be told and this explains the film's success. I mean it was a good film all in all, but the awards recognition and nominations sometimes were a bit too much perhaps. Also at Cannes Film Festival. Howw can anybody else there get in than the male lead. And so random this female submission too. Never heard of lead actor Pierfrancesco Favino before though, who physically reminded me a bit of Benicio del Toro. Certainly my loss. He is good and sometimes it feels pretty impressive how he carried the film from beginning to end. I mean he always gets help from the supporting cast, but still does a marvellous job at times. One scene that was basically only him is when he is at that supermarket and kinda worried somebody could show up and kill him too like with the prestigious judge earlier. So he buys the gun. A lot of the suspene in the final quarter of them film is linked to whether he will live or die (through somebody else's hand) and as this film is based on actual characters and stories, you could not be sure at all. A 50-50 matter. But yes, I wrote spoilers included, so he lives in the end and dies from old age apparently, but he never really feels safe anymore which we know through seeing him constantly on the roof up there with his gun for protection right near him. He even sleeps up there. These references about actual characters like Buscetta are why I think this is an especially crucial watch for Italian and those are the ones that I recommend it to the most. But also non-Italians like myself can have a good time seeing this one here. or a haunting time maybe even. There are some psychologically shocking moments like when we see the woman outside the helicopter and they use her and threaten to kill her to get information out of him. This shot definitely stays in the mind, almost epic. Others that were painful to watch (not because they were bad, certainly not) include the one when the two sons are brutally strangled. Or those recurring recordings of prison inmates going literally insane in these very small chambers and you can tell from the way they walk in there. (Just like with animals who have too little space. There's a scientific term for that even I think.) Or behave. Definitely helps in staying on the right side of the law this movie. Okay what else can I add. Yeah well, do not doze off in the first 35 minutes and you are in for a solid treat. I must still say the film was not really on a level where I would want to watch it anytime soon again unfortunately. Once is enough maybe. Oh yes, one I have not mentioned yet at all is Marco Bellocchio. Shame on me, also in terms of how I have not seen too much from his gigantic body of work that received so much awards recognition. He's been in the film industry for 60 years now, turned 80 in under a year and while he was not retired or so, he made a big comeback with this movie after focusing on short films recently in the years before that. Well, this film is anything but short. Maybe his experience and that he witnessed all those Buscetta events in person as he was not just alive, but also conscious back then, helped with this film too and how realistic it feels. Yes he is just a co-writer here and several other people worked on the screenplay, but that is nothing unusual either. By the way, anybody also getting Buscetta and Bruscetta mixed up? Probably no Italians would. And also no non-Italians that speak the language. Okay, I am drifting away now, so I shall leave it at that. It is almost a must-see if you like Mafia films. (No I know Mafia does not exist. Thanks for telling me.) But it is not really a film that will get you interested in the genre. If you wanna go for it, please don#t expect Godfather level. The overall outcome here gets a cautious thumbs-up from me. No enthusiasm, but I am still glad I got to see it.