Don't be bad by Claudio Caligari
- Francesca Laura Cersosimo
- 31 mar 2016
- Tempo di lettura: 2 min
Set in the 90s, Don't be bad talks about Cesare (Luca Marinelli) and Vittorio (Alessandro Borghi), two friends who have known each other since childhood. They lead their lives without worrying about the future, having fun and doing drugs, until the day Vittorio realizes he can't go on like this. When he finds a job and somebody to settle down with, the two friends take different paths.
Don't be bad is the last film by Claudio Caligari and also the last part of a trilogy, after Toxic love and The scent of the night, which is his only production during the 32 years of his career. This film - and his trilogy - has been compared to the work of poet, writer and director Pier Paolo Pasolini, mainly because of the geografical and social settings chosen by Caligari. While I don't completely disagree, such comparison is part of a process of unnecessary legitimisation and glorification of his production, right after his death. There is no need for that. Caligari shows a an independent and definite identity and is able to reach an intense dramatic tension throughout the story and to portray bits of reality with strong vividness.
Still of Luca Marinelli and Alessandro Borghi. Photo by Matteo Graia - © 2015 Kimerafilm Above: Still of Luca Marinelli - © 2015 Kimerafilm
Alessandro Borghi and Luca Marinelli, both ascending stars in the Italian scene, give proof of their ability, and their performances is extremely genuine. The characters of Cesare and Vittorio portray a generation, after Pasolini. The generation of the the eternally young ones, leaning on a typically Italian hope for an easy, effortless life. But there is more. Thought Cesare and Vittorio take different paths, they are the two faces of the same medal. The very fact that they belong to the lower class seems to entail their predestination to crime and drug-dealing, no matter how hard one tries to escape it. Vittorio finds a job, but this doesn't mean that he has won, or that he is "better" than his friends who are stuck at the bar - they even make more money than he does, due to their dishonest actvities.
Still of Alessandro Borghi and Luca Marinelli - © 2015 Kimerafilm
Ostia, the town on the sea, is the social environment which suffocates any aspiration and at the same time justifies the painful stillness originated by a criminal mentality which reiterates itself. Beautiful shots are dedicated to it, providing subtle visual quotes of Pasolini's works.
Still of Luca Marinelli as Cesare and his gang - © 2015 Kimerafilm
Like Pasolini, Caligari deals with a problematic social reality in a straightforward manner. But while Pasolini's purpose was denunciation of such social stillness, Caligari seems to convey a different message. Ours are different times, in which Caligari finds hope for change.
Director: Claudio Caligari Writers: Claudio Caligari, Francesca Serafini, Giordano Meacci
Cast: Luca Marinelli, Alessandro Borghi, Roberta Mattei, Silvia D'Amico, Alessandro Bernardini, Valentino Campitelli, Danilo Cappanelli, Manuel Rulli, Elisabetta De Vito, Alice Clementi
Year: 2015
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