Romanzo criminale (2005)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Michele Placido

Writers:

Giancarlo De Cataldo (novel)
Stefano Rulli (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

30 September 2005 (Italy)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | History

Plot Keywords:

Shot In The Torso | Shoot Out | 1990s | Father Son Relationship | Police

Awards:

16 wins & 13 nominations

Cast

Stefano Accorsi	...	Commissario Scialoja
Kim Rossi Stuart	...	Il Freddo
Pierfrancesco Favino	...	Libano
Claudio Santamaria	...	Il Dandi
Riccardo Scamarcio	...	Il Nero
Jasmine Trinca	...	Roberta
Elio Germano	...	Il Sorcio
Anna Mouglalis	...	Patrizia / Cinzia
Toni Bertorelli	...	La Voce
Stefano Fresi	...	Secco
Massimo Popolizio	...	Il terribile
Francesco Venditti	...	Bufalo
Benedito Sicca	...	Ranocchia
Daniele Miglio	...	Scrocchiazeppi
Roberto Infascelli	...	Gigio

Also Known As:

Crime Novel (UK) (literal English title)

Runtime:

152 min | 174 min (extended version)

Country:

Italy | France | UK

Language:

Italian | English | French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | France:-12 | Netherlands:16 | Italy:T | Ireland:16 | UK:15 | Argentina:16

Filming Locations:

Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy

Company:

Cattleya

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In the scene where Gigio lies dead in the hospital his chest rises as he takes a breath.

Soundtrack:

(Shake Shake Shake) Shake your booty

Criminal

I went to see "Romanzo Criminale" with very high hopes. Michele Placido made one of the best Italian films of the 90's "Un Eroe Borghese" with a superlative Fabrizio Bentivoglio. There he touched a delicate real life story and treated with the vigor of a vintage Costa Gavras. I regret to inform, none of that is evident in "Romanzo Criminale" The great bunch of young Italian actors assembled in one film! A story of friendship and betrayal, paralleled to the turbulent 70's. But something, definitely, went tragically wrong. The film seems rushed and thoughtless. Kim Rossi Stuart, one of the best of his generation, is wonderful to watch but his character swings from gloomy to gloomier and we're ask to feel compassion for him - although we're not allow to grieve for his victims. Half way through the film I started to get impatient and glancing at my watch. I felt detached, unmoved. The last nail in the coffin of this unfortunate venture is the casting of Stefano Accorsi. It may have been a commercial decision, Accorsi is a big star in Italy, but the idea backfired in a big way. His story is as convoluted as it is unbelievable. He doesn't have the strength or the power to transmit the ambiguity of his character. The women are treated as virgins or whores and what else is new. This time, I don't think, nobody can complain of lack of funds. I suspect they went for a commercial operation with fast cutting and a popular score with several well known hits from the 70's on. All together a disappointing experience.