Il signor Diavolo

Superficial and discounted. Terrible acting, elementary history and meaning none. As a mysterious film there is no tension, as a horror film there is no terror. Alessandro Haber and Andrea Roncato make small cameos: Haber is fine but does not shine as usual; Roncato, compared to the protagonists, looks like an Oscar-winning actor. In a peasant context, in 1952, they still go around with oil lamps (ok), but they also have many vans and cars, even the father of the little protagonist. Completely unreal: they were very poor, at most they could afford a cart pulled by a mule. I am Italian and I know well the situation of the villages of those years, even a bicycle was considered expensive (see "Bicycle Thieves" by Vittorio De Sica, 1948). Luckily I didn't go to see it at the cinema: after 5 minutes I would have gone away cursing and asking for a refund. Garbage.

This movie follows perfectly the style of other Pupi Avati's movies. It's a good gothic horror, characterized by a disturbing atmosphere pervaded by a sick and almost surreal sacredness.

I read the plot and I was so interesting in seeing that one. When I ended the movie I realized that it was not a Horror movie at all. It is just a Supernatural-or kind of-Mystery movie.

Again at the beginning it is very interesting but towards the hour of movie it becomes boring and boring; not knowing exactly what is happening it is not a good thing. They do not provide clues about what we are seeing.

The movie seems to be a long flashback and the investigation of the events. The end is kind of good, but that is all. If you are getting boring and want to stop watching, you must see the the very end.

In this movie, it's just the beginning part that's scary. For the rest the plot is ridiculous, the special effects are ridiculous and even the aura of the film that should be scary is ridiculous.

Firstly, why the hell are almost all dialogues so annoyingly whispered? I have to turn my TV's volume to NUCLEAR to hear clearly.

Some actors look quite out of their role, the story idea is OK, here and there the movie managed to give me some sweet discomfort of a horror, but narration is boring, very boring and too much built over long, whispered dialogues that pretend to build tension... without much success. In a sense the direction style seems quite theatrical which might meet the taste of some.

Nice soundtrack.