Review of A Quiet Life

A tough subject, dealing with a former killer member of the Camorra, who left for Germany to build a new identity and has to come to terms, after 15 yeas, with his past, on the background of a still actual emergency in Italy, that of rubbish in Naples: a difficult subject to handle, but solidly handled. The director proceeds with a highly controlled and steady direction, made up of sequence-shots, close-ups: this, together with clear-cut and sharp characters and essential dialogues contribute to an overall solid rendering of the drama, without parting with some increasing tension. Intensity gradually increases, indeed, supported by a tense narrative rhythm, probably partly ruined by the unlikely final slackening. Toni Servillo, awarded as best actor at the latest Rome film festival, makes a substantial difference, being his main role fit for him: his performance is truly great, intense, perfectly able to render the inner drama of a man trying to overcome a painful past, which will never abandon him.