Power, money and blood: these are the “values” that the residents of the Province of Naples and Caserta, have to face every day. They hardly ever have a choice, and are almost always forced to obey the rules of the “system”, the Camorra. Only a lucky few can even think of leading a “normal” life. Five stories are woven together in this violent scenario, set in a cruel and apparently imaginary world, but one that is deeply rooted in reality. A powerful and distinctly visceral work that benefits from director Garrone’s understated style, the violence, when it arrives, is non-sensationalised and the film acts as a mirror reflection of recent headlines regarding events in Italy. Based on the best-selling book by Roberto Saviano, this is perhaps the most realistic and resolutely unsentimental Mafia picture to emerge from Italy.
