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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Respiro (subtitled) Stars: Valeria Golino, Vincenzo Amato, Francesco Casisa, Veronica D’Agostino, Filippo Pucillo, Muzzi Loffredo, and Elio Germano Director and Scriptwriter: Emanuele Crialese Sony Pictures Classics Running Time: 94 minutes Rating: PG 13 Website: www.sonypicturesclassics.com Winner: Young Critics Award at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival Respiro, which means breath in Italian, has several connotations in this award-winning film by Emanuele Crialese. A mother gives the breath of life to her children, we breathe to sustain life, and, sometimes, the psychological air we live in isn't the best for us or those near us. The script gives us a woman, Grazia (Valeria Golino), possibly suffering from a bipolar disorder. Though dealt with on a somewhat humorous level, it becomes clear that Golino, who is married to Pietro (Vincenzo Amato) and has three children, Marinella (Veronica D'Agostino), Pasquale (Francesco Casisa), and Pier Luigi (Elio Germano), has a serious problem. There are times the audience can sympathize with Grazia, as when her husband comes home late at night from work and finds the family dog sleeping in bed. He quietly takes the dog with him to work the next day, except we know what really happens. As a result, Grazia goes to the local animal shelter and releases all the stray dogs. For every action, there is a reaction and the audience can see it will take someone from outside the village to deal with this situation. The story gives a birds-eye view of preteen boys who form little groups and fight with each other. If this were in a large city, they would be wearing leather jackets and heavy chains. Since cars are in short supply, the boys have to make do with walking, bicycling, or riding Vespas as transportation. Spending money comes from fishing or scavenging at the local landfill. Valeria Golino looks young to have teenage children, and she seems to want to enjoy a life that is far away from a fishing village, sardine factory, and daily grind of cooking. The village, beautifully photographed under a hot sun with turquoise sea as background, is nosy and bossy. Everyone knows everyone's business; it is a nice place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there. The acting is well done, especially Golino, who ranges from sad to euphoric and back; Vincenzo Amato, her brooding husband; and Francesco Casisa, the oldest son who has inner battles with the secrets he keeps. Some scenes could be from dreams and one especially is still puzzling. Having more to work with, such as when Grazia's problems began, would have helped make the film more understandable. Copyright 2003 Marie Asner
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