Review of Gomorrah (2008) by Michael L — 14 Dec 2009

Typically whenever there is a film about gangsters it's the well dressed, slicked haired good looking bunch who sit around tables of fine cooking and discuss various things like who is in need of being whacked. While there are many films that fit this description that I would consider among the greatest films ever made, they do sometimes come off as glorifying these criminals and their acts. The tragic truth is that organized crime is a very real problem in the world we live in, and it has terrible consequences on the people involved and the people caught in the middle.

Director Matteo Garrone's Gomorrah is an adaptation of a handful of stories from the book written by Robert Saviano. Saviano's book was met with a lot of controversy in Naples, since heads of various crime organizations vowed to have the author killed for his work. It's amazing that a book could have that much power to shake up the crime world like this, and equally impressive that Garrone's film was so capable of depicting this underworld just as well without remorse or glorification.

Gomorrah weaves together five separate stories of people whose lives are effected one way or the other by organized crime. Characters vary from a 13-year old delivery boy who becomes seduced by the gang life near his neighborhood, two men illegally dumping waste into various locations and even a pair of teenage boys desperately trying to make a name for themselves as legitimate gangsters. Each story paints a unique picture and different viewpoint on the film's subject matter, and the film's steady pace keeps your interest throughout.

Gomorrah is shot in a nicely done hand-held style. Garrone positions and moves his camera as if it were just another person in the room, giving the experience a somewhat documentary feel to it. Of all of the gangster movies I've seen, Gomorrah has the unique attribute of being by far the most real feeling I've seen. It isn't concerned with being the most explosive, or the most lively of gangster movies. Garrone wanted to make a dark film that showcased exactly how evil crime organizations like these can get, and he executed that perfectly.

This has been a film that I've been dying to see, but many delays and setbacks for the film has prevented me from doing so until now. I'm glad that the wait is over, and more than happy that the film proved to be worth the wait. I guess since this film is listed as a 2009 film (though most of its good word of mouth came at the tail end of last year), it is safe to label this one as one of the best films of the year. Certainly worth seeing if you've been wanting to see a far more realistic take on the world of organized crime.