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For residents of Palermo, Sicily, it was not uncommon in the early 80s to be greeted by the sight of severed limbs and bloody corpses slumped across the street in broad daylight. The power of the Mafia was so arrogantly unassailable in that era, that they thought nothing of murdering magistrates or politicians on the steps outside their homes or in a busy café, even in front of their own families. Enter prosecutors Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, the heroes of Marco Turco’s thorough, eye-opening documentary. Like a great trial lawyer Turco uses dramatic flourishes for effect but builds his case upon fact after undeniable fact.
Now considered national heroes, Falcone and Borsellino waged a battle of unfathomable enormity. Aside from the deeply entrenched culture of the Mafiosi — fostered incidentally by occupying allied troops after WW II — the two men faced the even larger obstacle of political corruption that stealthily sabotaged their efforts. Interviews with Falcone, the very picture of steely resignation, humanize what could have been a faceless story with a cast of thousands. After scoring a long drawn-out victory that resulted in the prosecution of hundreds of Mafia members including top bosses, the story has a sad postscript. The politicians, who only acted after confronted by an angry mob, have once again returned to a state of corrupt apathy, allowing a lower profile mafia to operate freely. The expressions of those caught in the crossfire of this war will haunt you.
Opens July 12 at Film Forum
Now considered national heroes, Falcone and Borsellino waged a battle of unfathomable enormity. Aside from the deeply entrenched culture of the Mafiosi — fostered incidentally by occupying allied troops after WW II — the two men faced the even larger obstacle of political corruption that stealthily sabotaged their efforts. Interviews with Falcone, the very picture of steely resignation, humanize what could have been a faceless story with a cast of thousands. After scoring a long drawn-out victory that resulted in the prosecution of hundreds of Mafia members including top bosses, the story has a sad postscript. The politicians, who only acted after confronted by an angry mob, have once again returned to a state of corrupt apathy, allowing a lower profile mafia to operate freely. The expressions of those caught in the crossfire of this war will haunt you.
Opens July 12 at Film Forum
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