The young ones
An impressive blending of fairytale imagery and dreamlike atmospherics with a story inspired by a real-life Mafia kidnapping adds up to one of the year’s most unexpectedly pleasing films
Sicilian Ghost Story Dir Fabio Grassadonia & Antonio Piazza, Italy 2017 On UK release from 3 August
Luna and Giuseppe display an affinity with birds and animals
A story of young love and how it can endure through the most harrowing circumstances. Luna (Julia Jedlikowska) is in the first tentative stages of a relationship with dishy classmate Giuseppe (Gaetano Fernandez). Then one evening, Giuseppe disappears without a trace. No one – certainly no adult – seems to be particularly interested in this turn of events, except Luna, who determines to find her boyfriend.
The film is told as two linked narratives: one follows Luna’s investigation and the other examines what has happened to Giuseppe. Often this device can have the effect of splitting a film’s power, the risk being that one strand is more gripping or interesting than the other. Not here though; in fact, it’s a great strength, mirroring as it does the film’s overall approach, which is to set up a number of dualities which power the story.
For instance, youth is set up in opposition to adulthood. The youngsters have energy, commitment and passion whereas the adults are lethargic, uninterested and passive. In particular, authority figures are shown to be unworthy of respect due to their ineffectual nature or lack of compassion: Luna’s mother is borderline sociopathic, while the police officer whose help Luna tries to enlist is merely annoyed by her pleas. Others are simply criminals. Only her father, a diabetic, displays any warmth.
Similarly, the film sets up the natural world in opposition to the violent interventions of humankind, which debase it. Luna and Giuseppe are closely identified with the elements, especially water, and display an affinity with birds and animals. There is one exception, a fierce black dog, which is presumably there to demonstrate that even nature has a dark side.
As much as it is a gripping thriller, Sicilian Ghost Story is also an engaging coming-of-age drama. Jedlikowska gives a nuanced performance as a young girl barely out of childhood who is beginning to experience the joy and pain of the adult world. By turns sullen and charming, deliriously happy and utterly bereft, Luna is not an easy part, especially for an actress whom I believe is making her feature film debut.
This film reminded me of several others while retaining an originality and haunting atmosphere of its own. There is a touch of Picnic at Hanging Rock about it, particularly in the early stages and with respect to its dreamlike atmosphere and hints of magic realism. It also reminded me of Atonement in the sense of the imagination being used to correct injustices.
In this age of overstatement, boorishness and bombast it is a relief to see evidence of film-makers out there who can make films on a personal level that resonate far beyond that, so I can highly recommend this film, which on top of all its other qualities has an excellent score by Soap&Skin.