Gomorrah

Colour, 35 mm
Italy, 2008, 135 min
Section: Open Eyes

Synopsis

This brutally raw fresco by director Matteo Garrone relates with incredible precision the ways in which the Neapolitan mafia branch known as the Camorra controls day-to-day life. The film takes us to the outskirts of northern Naples, once a modern development, now inhabited by a mix of people on the local bosses’ payrolls and those who eagerly await the day that they, too, will be able to serve. It is a world where the only law is violence, the only value power, the only dream is money, and the only universal language the gun. The war of the clans is about dominating the markets for narcotics, hazardous waste, prostitution, and even the tourism and clothing industries. The film, none of whose characters are lead roles, yet each is unforgettable, is based on a book by journalist Roberto Saviano (b. 1979) which became an overnight bestseller in 2006, and not only in Italy. Since then, threats have forced the author to live under constant police protection. The film adaptation has been labelled in reviews as “the truest film about the mafia ever made”. At the recent 61st Cannes Film Festival the jury awarded Gomorrah the Grand Prix – the second highest award after the Palme d’Or.

About the director

Matteo Garrone (b. 1968, Rome) studied fine art. He worked as an assistant cameraman from 1986 while continuing with his painting. His first feature, Terra di mezzo, took the Special Jury Prize at the 1997 Turin International Festival of Young Cinema. Other films by Garrone enjoyed success at international festivals, such as Oreste Pipolo, fotografo di matrimoni, the feature film Guests (Ospiti) and, in particular, the drama The Embalmer (L’imbalsamatore, 2002), which was included in the Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes in 2002 and in the Horizons section at the KVIFF in 2003. His next film, First Love (Il primo amore, 2005), which previously competed in Berlin (awarded the Silver Bear for Best Music), was also screened in Karlovy Vary.