Baarìa (2009) on Netflix
In Bagheria, the Sicilian town of Baarìa, shepherd Cicco reads books and epic poems. His son Peppino witnesses the injustice of the mafiosi and landowners, becomes a communist, and loves Mannina.
- Netflix3.4/5
- IMDb6.9/108,468 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes55%
Trailer
Plot summary
Cicco Torrenuova is a shepherd in Bagheria, a town in the province of Palermo called Baarìa in Sicilian, and his family's story there passes from him to his son Peppino and on to Peppino's son Pietro. Through the family's poverty Cicco keeps his passion for books. Peppino grows up in the Fascist years, when people go hungry, and sees injustice done by mafiosi and landowners. The Second World War comes, and Peppino joins the Communist Party. After the war he meets Mannina, a local girl, and hopes to marry her, but her family is against the match because of his politics.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Baarìa (2009)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- In Baarìa a cow is killed on screen with an iron punch driven into its skull, without pain relief, and actors then collect and drink its blood; Italy's Lega Antivivisezione condemned the killing, which could not have been shot in Italy and was instead filmed in Tunisia, where such restrictions do not exist.
- In October 2009 the ENPA began an international boycott of the film and an online petition to revoke its designation as Italy's Oscar entry; Giuseppe Tornatore responded that Tunisia was not chosen to bypass Italian regulations and the animal was not killed for the film, the scene coming from a local slaughterhouse where such killings happen daily.
- Italy's National Association of Animal Protection (ENPA) demanded that all copies distributed in theatres be withdrawn, saying the film's unrestricted rating exposed minors to disgusting and fearful images, and argued that after an application to the Minister of Justice prosecution could still take place in Italy.
- Tornatore shot the film in Bagheria, where he was born, and in an old neighbourhood of Tunis, Tunisia, chosen because it better depicted what Bagheria looked like in the early 20th century.
