Piranhas [La paranza dei bambini] **** (2019, Francesco Di Napoli, Viviana Aprea, Mattia Piano Del Balzo) – Movie Review

Francesco Di Napoli stars in co-writer/ director Claudio Giovannesi’s controversial Italian crime drama Piranhas [La paranza dei bambini] (2019) as 15-year-old Nicola, who leads a small gang of teenage boys on motorbikes through the streets of Naples armed with hand guns and weapons on the road to taking over the local mob bosses’ territory. They are the new Mafia. Only boys, they are on a get-rich-quick, power-crazy kick as they become the new bosses of Naples, stealing, intimidating, drug-dealing and killing as they go.

The boys are exceptionally close, and very bonded, as the film explores the complex theme of friendship between boys. But Nicola also has some time for a pretty girl, Letizia (Viviana Aprea), daughter of a restaurant owner in another part of town that is ruled by another gang. There’s a little bit of Romeo and Juliet here, but it is none too romantic.

Piranhas is based on fact, but it is not a true story, which is no doubt why it works well as drama, as a movie, when real life just won’t fit in to a satisfying 105 minute story. [Spoiler alert] As it is, Piranhas finishes open endedly, which is a slight frustration, but this ending is inevitable and kind of expected from the start, barring the writers killing off the major characters.

The film is visceral and exciting. It moves, and never feels like an adaptation of a novel, which it is – by Roberto Saviano. We are along with the boy mob bosses for the thrill ride, on the road with them, following them along corridors and through rooms, though nevertheless at heart the film is thoughtful and responsible. The film kind of has its cake and eat it here.

Francesco Di Napoli has model looks and a killer smile, and looks like butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth. But, when he’s got a gun in his hand or starts to get mad, he looks crazy, gun crazy, every inch the character of Nicola. He holds the film together with a firm grip, just like his character holds the gang together. Nicola’s character has apparently been toned down from the book. No doubt that is a good thing, making character and film more complex and subtle, as well as, dangerously, more sympathetic.

We get to see a lot of the streets of Naples in the film, and that too is a good thing, making for a fresh and realistic experience, of the kind the tourists never get. This is Italy at the raw end. Piranhas is not a good advert for the country’s tourist industry.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Movie Review

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