GOMORRA

   Gomorra is an Italian mob drama that takes an inside look at five Italian civilians whose lives are influenced by the all-powerful Comorra mafia. You’re either with the Comorra or you’re their enemy, and we get a glimpse of both sides and what their daily lives consist of. Gomorra is an eye-opening film that exposes the unfortunate truths hiding in America’s closet.

    One of the plot lines tells the story of Pasquale (Salvatore Cantalupo) who is a tailor working at a factory controlled by the Comorra. When the mafia finds out Pasquale has taken a night job teaching Chinese competitors how to sew, they attempt an attack on his life and he is forced to flee. Pasquale’s talents go to waste, as he becomes a truck driver in order to escape death. By the end of the film, many intriguing themes have surfaced, but none as so interesting as the one that is a startling wake up call for Americans.

    This controversial theme that has put the life of director Matteo Garrone in danger surfaces as waste manager Franco (Toni Servillo) calls to a colleague who decides the unethical business going on isn’t for him. Franco yells to him as he’s walking away, “Don’t think you’re any better than me.” He implies that just because Americans aren’t the ones calling the shots doesn’t mean they aren’t enjoying the benefits that result from the distress and suffering of others. 

    These horrible crimes being conducted in Italy are all at the hand of the Comorra mafia, who are ironically enough invested in the rebuilding of the Twin Towers here in America. They control the factories that make beautiful dresses for our movie stars to wear. They control the outsourcing firms that make our food, our most cherished possessions, our cars, and everything we use on a daily basis without considering whose blood was shed for our happiness. 

    Translating from one language to another doesn’t come without its misfortunes. At times the English subtitles were unfortunately funnier than they were meant to be because definitions differ in every language and finding a word with identical meaning can be difficult. The five plot lines became confusing to follow as the non-Italian speaking American was forced to read subtitles and differentiate between stories all at the same time.

    Despite its technical difficulties, the documentary type style of this film makes the stories and acting appear indisputably real and fascinating. A film like this one could start a reformation—If not a war.