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Wednesday, July 14, 2021

PIRANHAS / LA PARANZA DEI BAMBINI (2019)

Another angle on the Neapolitan Mob from GOMORRAH author Roberto Saviano, with tight, on-the-run direction in narrow Naples streets from Claudio Giovannesi who also did a pair of episodes for the GOMORRAH tv series.*  It’s the old, old story of a fast rising go-getter, making himself available to the head of his neighborhood protection racket.  Maybe he can get a regular gig out of it, maybe get them to drop the weekly dues his mom pays at her small dry cleaners.  But raw ambition meets opportunity when his bosses are arrested and there’s a sudden power vacuum to fill.  Perfect for him & a new friend whose family once ran the neighborhood to take advantage of.  But when turf borders stop being honored, its not just the scooters that start to spin out of control.  With too much money, drugs & guns coming in, even partners find reasons to fight amongst themselves.  And soon another administration or gang war threaten to take over everything.  The old story, yet still new when you put the ‘selfie’ generation in the mix, and the enforcers are 15-yr-old high school drop outs.  The scene, superbly caught in parts of Naples that only look tourist-friendly; the young men, full of bravado & barely suppressed sexual charge.  Aces at homophobic trash-talk, with girls or whores on call, they also can’t stop pawing & kissing each other.  (Debuting lead Francesco Di Napoli’s fashion-model bone structure & androgyny pretty enough for him to pass in drag on a killing.)  Saviano leaves much unsaid, are there no alternatives in work or school at this age?, but what we get is riveting stuff that never turns celebratory.  The ending may be ambiguous but their future ain’t.

DOUBLE-BILL/LINK: *As mentioned above, GOMORRAH/’08, the original film.  https://maksquibs.blogspot.com/2010/07/gomorrah-2008.html

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