Review of Tre metri sopra il cielo

This story about the love between a good, correct girl and a charming, troubled bad boy is beautifully told in the book, but the main aspects of it are blurred or straightly changed in the film, turning it into a shallow, nonsense, boring teenage romantic film. First, the film fails to state the huge abyss that separates Babi and Step. In the book, Babi didn't like Step and his lifestyle, she finds him violent and rude (in the film she actually says she had a great time riding on the back of the motorcycle, which is ridiculous, because it's dangerous and she's just not that type of girl). Despite her objections, Babi falls for Step because she is attracted to him and the freedom and fun with which he faces the world. In the film, Step is presented as a bitter teenager who's constantly angry and doesn't talk much. The 'true' Step is quite the opposite. He is charming, happy and manages perfectly to turn all questionings to his attitude towards the one who is judging him. He is secure, irresponsible and, together with his friend Pollo, feels like he owns the world. They are not stopped by fear, manners, social and legal rules in the way of enjoying themselves and life. In this, the plot manages to engage the reader/viewer in wanting to feel as free as they do, but at the same time to question the illegality of their actions and recklessness towards other people. Just as Babi does. But she surrenders to what she feels for him, despite this. This fact on its own is crucial. It tells about inner conflicts, the judgment call we all have to make about what we can and cannot accept, and how so many times our feelings are not something we can control, whatever our mind says. Step is not only charming but actually shows to be sensitive enough to wait for Babi until she is ready to make love with him. She doesn't feel ready, but he is so tender and caring, doesn't push beyond what she lets him and creates a perfect atmosphere for their first time, just as she had asked (again, this is totally twisted in the film, where Babi is eager to have sex with him, apparently only because he is so hot (since Step is not charming in the film, just violent). This troubled, intense love story ends (in the book) with Babi leaving Step, as she realizes that he is not going to change his violent self. Also, once the initial wave of maddening love is passed, the fact that both hate each other's world becomes too evident. Step is left heartbroken, because he is left with all his wounds exposed, those he had managed so well to hide. The fight with his mother, his loneliness, the origin for all that anger and violence. The end is truly heartbreaking, because he is left alone, with Babi gone and Pollo dead. But at the same time it makes total sense, it couldn't have been any different. He is left to face his issues, deal with them and perhaps make a better man out of himself, more considerate, less violent, more responsible. All this in the book of course. As said, the main facts about the personality and relationship of and between the characters have been totally changed in the film, so one could actually say that the book and film are not the same story, even though they bare the same name. It makes one wonder why people bother to make a film based on the book if they are going to change everything. Such changes are usually based on attracting the wider audiences, but if the book was so successful is for a reason, and they should have realized that. So, out of a great book that managed to engage a whole generation capturing the essence of adolescence and the first love, they made a shallow, not convincing film, with some lousy acting too. In summary, don't bother with the film, read the book.