Ladro di bambini, Il (1992)

Director:

Gianni Amelio

Writers:

Giorgia Cecere (dialogue) and
Gianni Amelio (writer)

Release Date:

3 March 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Antonio, a policeman (carabiniere), has an order to take two children (Rosetta and her brother Luciano) from Milan to Sicily to an orphanage...

Plot Keywords:

Carabinieri | Brother Sister Relationship | Child Abuse | Mother Daughter Relationship | Police Custody

Awards:

12 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Enrico Lo Verso	...	Antonio
Valentina Scalici	...	Rosetta
Giuseppe Ieracitano	...	Luciano
Florence Darel	...	Martine
Marina Golovine	...	Nathalie
Fabio Alessandrini	...	Grignani
Agostino Zumbo	...	Priest
Vitalba Andrea	...	Antonio's Sister
Massimo De Lorenzo	...	Papaleo
Celeste Brancato	...	Girl at Dinner
Vincenzo Peluso	...	Carabiniere
Santo Santonocito	...	Carabiniere
Renato Carpentieri	...	Chief of Police
Maria Pia Di Giovanni	...	Mother of Rosetta and Luciano
Lello Serao	...	Arrested Man

Also Known As:

Enfants volés, Les (France)
Gestohlene Kinder (Germany)
The Stolen Children

Runtime:

114 min | Finland:116 min (1993)

Country:

France | Switzerland | Germany | Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Netherlands:AL | Iceland:L | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-10 | Germany:12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Marina di Ragusa, Ragusa, Sicily, Italy

Company:

Alia Film

Trivia:

Enrico Lo Verso was the only member of the main cast to be a professional actor.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Joannis Amaelii, animula, vagula blandula (1992)

Enthralled by the children's performances

This movie is the story of a journey, a common theme among movie-makers. In this film a policeman is charged with the transfer of two children (aged 11 and 9)from Milano to a Home for Children in Sicily. It is based on a newspaper report which gives authenticity to the story. Remarkable performances are given by the children who amazingly have had no previous experience in film-acting. Eye contact between the main characters is particularly powerful. The policeman also acts convincingly. He finds the resentful children a difficult pair to control. The 11-year old has a secret(about her life of prostitution) and her young brother is an asthmatic sadly in need of his father who has abandoned them. There are some tender scenes in the film where the policeman introduces the children to his happy extended family, where the policeman gives the boy some swimming lessons in the sea and where they agree to find each other when the boy leaves the Home at 15 years of age. A simple theme but so enthralling.