One day I'm going to talk about the illustrious crime series, Gomorrah. Let me tell you that it is one of the best TV series I've witnessed.
Especially season three, it's like poetry in motion. I will go on hand to say that it's up there with The Sopranos, Boardwalk Empire, The Wire, and so on. I know that's a crazy thought, but believe me, it's true. We will cross that bridge when we get to it, now is not the time, not yet.
I do bring up the series, is the film that I am talking about is a follow up on the series, particularly season 3. L'immortale (The Immortal in Italian) is the back story of Ciro Di Marzio (played by Marco Amore), and we see his inspiration to lead the life of crime. What made him fearless and tenacious as a mafia boss becomes more apparent as we dive into his backstory.
I want to tell you that this is very much a story told in the form of a poem or an orchestra. It is beautiful yet full of pain, full of tragedy, full of joy. In this film, you see the Italy that you don't usually see on the holiday brochures or in the Hollywood movies. We see Naples, in a working-class area, where Ciro grows up as an orphan. He has to learn how to fend for himself as an adolescent being raised by his childhood mentor, Bruno, who takes on several kids who are also in the same position as Ciro.
You would like to think that Bruno is taking these kids under his wing, showing them right from wrong, getting them to become the best versions of themselves possible. You would think that, right? Wrong. These kids are in a situation where they have to do whatever it takes to survive from an early age; because of where they grow up, the economic situation is dire. Any job would see them earning peanuts.
On the flip side, we see Ciro in the present, where he has just survived a near-fatal shot on a boat after a sour fall out. Ciro is rescued and given anonymous care, given a second shot at life but in a different country. Don Aniello, who saves him, sends him to Latvia, who sends him to work for a Russian Mafia boss, Yuri Dobeshenko. It is probably the second chance that Ciro needed, and to his surprise, he reunites with his mentor Bruno. There was hurt in his eyes and astonishment to seeing Bruno again.
In the series Gomorrah, Ciro was quite a misunderstood character. It was clear to see that he had been dealing with a lot of trauma. As a result of all the crazy things he had dealt with- it became challenging for him to trust anyone. This Mafia thing is not a game, you know, people are liable to change sides if it means they get a better opportunity for themselves. Ciro understood that, and because of that, he had to make a sacrifice not to trust anyone whatsoever. A sacrifice one has to make to stay alive in this game.
I believe the incorporation of music in the flashbacks was liquid gold; it was one of the film's main strengths. It had allowed me as a viewer to go on a journey, the way that the director Marco D'amore, had intended (I think anyway). Another strength of the film was the cinematography- the description of each location was described wonderfully without telling me what was in the shot. The cinematography did all of that talking for me. You know the whole vibe of show and not tell? Yeah, this is it.
While I enjoyed this film and I was able to form an emotional connection with the protagonist, Ciro Di Marzio, only because of my last viewing of the series. Therefore there are things in the story that you would not understand without there being any context. So that would mean it is not completely strong as a stand-alone film. So despite that, the technical side of L'immortale still makes for incredible viewing.
I would certainly recommend this for you to watch if you find the time to do so. If you have seen this film already, I would love to know what you think of this. Be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments down below!
Til next time
Picture reference:
https://www.sky.com/watch/title/programme/49f149a6-e663-4387-8d33-bb50baa9d477/limmortale
https://www.tgcom24.mediaset.it/spettacolo/supercinema/dalla-tv-al-cinema-marco-damore-ancora-ciro-di-gomorra-ne-limmortale_11920445-201902a.shtml
https://www.insidetheshow.it/450510_limmortale-recensione/
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