Burning Hearts (original title: Ti mangio il cuore), directed by Pippo Mezzapesa, is a part of this year’s Venice film festival. Written by Antonella Gaeta, Davide Serino along with the director, the screenplay follows a feud between two rival families from a small town in Italy.
It primarily delves into a cyclical revenge tale that occurs due to the pride and glory of these Italian families. A blood-fueled saga unfolds between them over a period that aptly captures its title. The burning hearts of these civilians are thirsty to make the others suffer for motives rooted in their identity. Whether personal or familial, they go to any lengths to protect it.
The feud between the Malatesta clan and the Camporeale clan dates back to the childhood of the Malatesta patriarch in the promontory of Gargano. After witnessing a death of a loved one, he quenches his thirst for revenge by killing an entire generation of Camporeale. However, that doesn’t end this rampage. It just becomes another step in a never-ending path of vengeance that shows no sign of stopping due to their passionate hatred toward others.
The loss of family members becomes a norm for these people who see others as nothing but just their targets. When it comes to matters of pride, a lust for power also supersedes almost any other feeling.
In such a chaotic atmosphere, Marilena (Elodie), the beautiful wife of the Camporeale boss, falls for Andrea (Francesco Patanè), an heir of the Malatesta clan. Despite attempts from the Malatesta patriarch to resist it from going any further, their forbidden love becomes more vital by their longing for one another. They grow a fondness with a fatal passion. To her, Andrea appears as a way to get out of her toxic marriage with her husband, which keeps her from living the life she hopes to have for herself and her children. Perhaps, Andrea’s timid demeanor without a revenge-struck thirst like others seems more attractive and safer under the circumstances. Their romance arc becomes integral in shaping the feudal narrative further.
While laying down the path of their lives, Vincenzo Soprano’s editing creates a massive impact. How it balances out the silences with the rage-filled gruesome murders is ingenious. The clever mix of script elements makes a consistently engaging and endlessly riveting film. It holds your undivided attention with a chain of sequences just as brutal in their silent confrontations as in transparent displays of hideous acts.
The moments of anticipation doomed to end on a tragic note are also presented with the required amount of suspense. Besides the editing and sound, the breathtaking work by the film’s cinematographer Michele D’Attanasio is another vital element of the film. It fuses his skills for gorgeous, atmospheric, and meaningful framing. Their work makes the film a cinematic experience worth having on a big cinema screen. And the performances by not just the two leads but the entire cast become a cherry on the top.
The themes of respect, pride, and vendetta are explored in Burning Hearts with a clear interest in making the narration cinematically compelling. A position of respect is what all the characters seek, and all anyone of them wants for themselves is to lead a life with dignity, not to be perceived as a coward. Many tragedies strike in their lives due to the same insistent need.
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Marilena’s journey appears more and more driven by her intent to escape from such a life filled with instability and insanity. She seeks a life of peace & respect the way she deserves to lead. Her involvement in both the families becomes a catalyst in the further happenings while all she desires is a piece of sanity. Besides hers, Andrea’s character arc is the most fleshed out to convey his transformation from a meek lover to a person engulfed in battles that were better left unfought.
While you can experience Déjà vu with many of its revenge tale elements, I dare say that the film doesn’t keep you hooked to the screen. While it does not reach heights with its moral exploration, it impresses its superlative reiteration of grim, real-life incidents. The makers might have their interpretations for the use of black-and-white. However, as a viewer, it brought the polarizing nature of their psyches to the forefront while simultaneously making it a timeless tale.
BURNING HEARTS (2022) OFFICIAL TRAILER
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uWpBRbDc6I
