This is a remarkable story, told in a very clever way. Combined with the beautiful wide shots of historic Sicily and convincing acting from the whole cast, what you have here is an all round excellent film. Monica Bellucci is... flawless.

Monica Belluci delivers the dictionary definition of the word sexy. Funnily enough, the movie is almost a remake of directors first major arthouse hit - New Cinema Paradiso. Or better yet it is set in the same reality. I highly recommend it.

A very well narrated tale of the coming of age story of a boy. The story is very moving and the back drop of Sicily is amazing. The overall performance of everyone is worthy and Monica Bellucci is a Greek goddess.

Oh, Monica, you are perfection.

Great story telling and narrative is why this one is so fun to watch.Grippng characters and good acting ( fairly strong from ms belluci, good acting from the lead male) combined with some gorgeous shots make this a great watch! Wonderfully composed, and good pacing even! Usually these time period flicks can get slow, but not this one! One of the finest out of Italian cinema. A must see for all fans of film.

date viewed: 8/19/10 not nearly as affecting as tornatore's cinema paradiso, however, i would recommend this film that does a good job balancing comic and dramatic elements with a plausible if not totally satisfying finale. luciano federico was a standout for me as renato's father.