Les charmes de la vengeance

The only thing I have to say about the film BELLA MAFIA is that it is utterly amazing. This is no doubt in my opinion the best drama that I have ever seen. The cast was superb. The writing amazing. The movie drew me in from the first scene. And I admit that I didn't expect it to be good at all. I was sort of just looking for a film to past the time.

The one thing I loved the most was the development in character. As a viewer, I saw all of the characters lives change in great detail. From Sofia to Luca to Moyra. Even though the plot had some violent scenes, the writer managed to put in aspects of loyalty and love which made you kind of root for vengeance against the opposite characters. All in all. One of the best, if not the best in my opinion. If you want drama and action, see this movie.

I was extremely disappointed with Bella Mafia. I was expecting a female version of the Godfather (although nothing can compare with the actual Godfather). Although the plot was the best thing about this movie, it was lukewarm at best. The passion (when Vito loses Sonny), orchestration of events (like when Michael takes out the five families), and epic feeling are all missing from this film. Vanessa Redgrave is wonderful, although only about three people from the entire cast could actually pull off sounding Sicilian. The directing was very weak, and the progression of the story was hurried (every five minutes, you were seeing text on the screen that said "Ten Years Later," "Five Years Later," etc. Overall, I was VERY disappointed with Bella Mafia...not that I expected anything more from a "T.V. Movie," but that it wasted so much potential.

when i saw this movie when it was released as a mini series,i was elated to find that this italian mafia film had plenty of sustenance and not filler like many minis do.plot was strong,acting well done,and all the ladies were gorgeous.i'm ready for a second installment, like a book II perhaps.

The extravagant look, sunny locations and the "distant lands" atmosphere make this movie a great escape on a winter's day. Le Plante is tied by US law but succeeds in keeping the story flowing with some sweet touches here and there. Being a big Carmen Argenziano fan, there's plenty to drool over and he plays the part of an influential Don with style. Others players add little but on the whole this is an enjoyable piece.

Apparently, I must have seen the cut-down version of 'Bella Mafia' - running time: 113 minutes - because like every fifteen minutes there was a time leap into the future (sometimes only months, sometimes years). I just didn't have time to get into the story that way. Also, it had this artificial drama feel to it and the same sappy score to go with it. Now, I understand this way of film making, but I don't exactly approve of it. But than, at the 1-hour mark, a lot of people suddenly get killed in two simultaneous scenes and this made-for-TV movie promptly becomes very, very interesting. And during the next 50 minutes, it totally redeems itself from the flaws of the first half. The ending is marvelous, especially when you've come to learn a lot about the characters' background. Nastassja Kinski's role is the pillar of all the drama & intrigues in 'Bella Maffia' and the best part of it all is that nobody knows about it (except for one person at the very end). There seems to be a two-part mini-series of this film (with a lot of extra scenes, I imagine - 2x105 minutes). So if you're interested in seeing 'Bella Mafia', I could advice you to watch the full mini-series. You'll probably get more out of it. Oh, and there's quite a few shocking scenes in this movie, especially considering it was made for TV. Not bad at all. Just be sure to be persistent biting your way through that first hour.