Sicilian ghost history
Mafia’s ghost
Film. Between myth and reality, teen-movie and mafia thriller, Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza revisit the genres with this Sicilian tale, however drawn from a true story.
By Franck Lebraly
Giuseppe and Luna love each other like teenagers, they live in the same village and spend their time crossing on each other in the woods. When Giuseppe oddly disappears, Luna is the only one to look for him. Everyone knows the mafia is behind all of this but the passion, greater than the omerta, leads her to the dream’s doors. This dark and gloomy story, draw by real events, tells the kidnapping of Giuseppe Di Matteo by a mafia clan in 1993.
“Presented at Sundance and Cannes in 2017”
Presented at Sundance and Cannes in 2017, Sicilian Ghost History is the second feature film by the two directors from Palermo Fabio Grassadonia et Antonio Piazza. After a meticulous research, they wanted to get away from the mafia thriller that the subject foresaw.
Their approach avoids typical Sicilian landscapes, mafiosos are almost invisible, teenagers don’t ride Vespa, but nevertheless wear Superga. The forest as gateway, arouses dreams and raises the film to the dimension of a fantastical, dreamlike and disturbing tale. The omnipresent of Giuseppe’s double and his few camera looks are breaking the unbearable. The investigation revealed that after months of torture, Giuseppe had been strangled and his body dissolved in acid. The mafia’s cowardice instead of its legend, another way to explore a mysterious Sicily rich in (hi)stories.
