La bestia nel cuore (2005)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Cristina Comencini

Writers:

Cristina Comencini (novel)
Cristina Comencini (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

17 March 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Sabina has a regular life. She is satisfied with her job and her love for Franco. Lately nightmares start disturbing her...

Plot Keywords:

Secret | Childhood | Nightmare | Blind | Brother Sister Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 9 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Giovanna Mezzogiorno	...	Sabina
Alessio Boni	...	Franco
Stefania Rocca	...	Emilia
Angela Finocchiaro	...	Maria
Giuseppe Battiston	...	Andrea Negri
Luigi Lo Cascio	...	Daniele
Valerio Binasco	...	Father
Francesca Inaudi	...	Anita
Lucy Akhurst	...	Anne
Lewis Lemperuer Palmer	...	Giovanni
Jeke-Omer Boyayanlar	...	Bill
Simona Lisi	...	Mother
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Roberto Infascelli
Alessandra Mastronardi	...	Commessa Amante
Manny Oliverez	...	Airline Passenger
Rita Statte	...	La Barista

Also Known As:

Don't Tell (UK) (festival title) (USA)
La bête dans le coeur (France)
The Beast in the Heart (UK) (literal English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for sexual content, nudity, language and a brief violent image.

Runtime:

120 min

Country:

Italy | UK | France | Spain

Language:

Italian | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Italy:T (re-rating after appeal) | Italy:VM14 (original rating) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16

Filming Locations:

Apulia, Italy

Company:

Cattleya

Another wonderful, poignant female lead delivery from Giovanna Mezzogiorno of "Facing Windows" and "The Last Kiss"

Be it Sabina in w-d Cristina Comencini's "La Bestia Nel Cuore" 2005, or Giovanna in w-d Ferzan Ozpetek's "La Finestra Di Fronte" 2003, or Giulia in w-d Gabriele Muccino's "L'Ultimo Bacio" 2001, Italian actress Giovanna Mezzogiorno's portrayals are so complexly simple and 'relishingly' memorable to watch.

"Don't Tell" may not be for everyone due to the difficult, sensitive subject matter. There were Hollywood or television movies that dealt with this 'beastly' subject, and "Bliss" (1996 from writer-director Lance Young) came to mind. "Bliss" is more frank and direct in dealing with the sexual repression issue (the film is for mature audience.) Here with "Don't Tell" - based on her own novel "The Beast in the heart," co-writer and director Cristina Comencini gave us a more 'insider viewpoint' on this issue of family secrets. Through Sabina's anxieties, reactions to her nightmares, and through her brother Daniele's flashbacks and accounts of his childhood responses to his parents, we could feel the painful memories along with them.

But the film is never heavy. Comencini has created for us sketches of life: we get to see Sabina in her everyday life, meeting the people she's with and cares for. Through them, we get the balance of humor in the conversations we eavesdrop vs. the somber subject of Sabina struggling internally with unwanted childhood memories. There is Emilia - a longtime childhood blind friend Sabina helps and visits regularly; Maria - a colleague at her marital crossroads Sabina hangs out and chats with; Franco - Sabina's actor boyfriend she loves and lives with; and through Franco at work on a TV soap series, we meet the lively director Andrea Negri, who somehow adds colorful tenderness to the young (love in, love out) couple of Sabina and Franco.

"A scar is an indelible mark, but it's not an illness," so Daniele, now married with a loving American wife and father of two sons, said to his sister Sabina. There are painful memories that we cannot erase, but we survive and learn to live anew, going beyond the past vs. wallowing in it. "Don't Tell" is a worthwhile film to experience. Thanks to Rosanna Del Bruno's translation (also on Gabriele Salvatore's "I'm Not Scared" 2003), the subtitles were easy to absorb as we appreciate the wonderful performances all round. For the fans of "The Best of Youth" (aka "La Meglio Gioventu") 2003, both the Carati brothers are featured in this film: Luigi Lo Cascio (Nicola) is Daniele the brother, and Alessio Boni (Matteo) is Franco the boyfriend.