Search - Angela on DVD

A Moody Bit of Sicilian Life and Crime

Grady Harp | Los Angeles, CA United States | 04/03/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Italian director Roberta Torre co-wrote with Massimo D'Anolfi this little film based on a true story of an incident in 1984 Sicily that revealed the integration of home life with crime in a quietly subtle way. Expect no major crime scenes (with one exception) and don't look for a THE SOPRANOS spin-off and the film will entertain because it is an honest attempt to demonstrate how passion can upset even the most controlled crime syndicate.



Angela (the very beautiful Donatella Finocchiaro) is married to Rosario 'Saro' Parlagreco (Mario Pupella), a shoe store owner in Palermo where Angela works - not only selling shoes but also selling drugs in a very cleverly devised crime syndicate run by her husband. Saro gives her jewels and money and all the things that are supposed to make a wife happy. But when Angela's interest in the business/drug trafficking wanes, Saro brings on handsome Masino (Andrea Di Stefano) to brighten the scene. The police are watching the operation, attempting to capture evidence to shut down the drug business. When Angela and Masino begin a rather torrid affair the police photograph their liaisons and this leads to the destruction of the shoe store drug business. The entire group is jailed with Angela and Manino being released on house arrest. But when Saro is informed by the police of his wife's infidelity the theme becomes operatic and the resolution of the true story is typical Sicilian drama.



The movie is slight, short, in Italian with English subtitles, and is well wroth watching for the pleasure of Donatella Finocchiaro's presence. It is fascinating to see how even a small drug operation can have such impact on a real family. Grady Harp, April 07"

What'd you expect?

Daniel B. Clendenin | www.journeywithjesus.net | 01/25/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I watched this film because the DVD case boasts that it won awards at five film festivals, but that only proves that the experts can be badly wrong. Set in 1984 Palermo, Angela is bored at her husband Saro's shoe store, so she takes a more active role in the real family business, which is running drugs by stuffing them into the shoes inside the boxes. Angela is something of a trophy wife for the older mafioso Saro, and you know it's a very bad idea when the younger Masino, a confidant of Saro, starts to hit on her. What was he thinking? In a mafia movie? In prison Saro dumps Angela and promises, "your prince charming is a walking corpse." We never see Masino again, nor does Angela. I tired at watching unshaven men with unbuttoned shirts and pinky rings talk tough in darkened rooms, and failed to find anything very interesting in this movie. In Italian with English subtitles."