Sulla mia pelle

"Sulla mia pelle" seems to follow the conventional style of post-Gomorra Italian crime/drama films. Even though we all already knew the story, it is a great Netflix Original, albeit not an outstanding one.

"Sulla mia pelle" could be compared to Ryan Coogler's Fruitvale Station, both in themes and structure: both films focus on recent cases of police abuse, and unwrap their plot through a short period (which is one day for Coogler's film, one week for Cremonini's).

While the Cucchi case had enormous mediation relevance in Italy, I wouldn't dare to call it an "incredible true story", albeit an important case of crime perpetuated by the police. Similarly, I wouldn't say that Sulla mia pelle is a masterpiece of a film, but definitely a good film. Due to the subject, I doubt it could have been any better than how it turned out.

Ever since Garrone's "Gomorra", that was released in 2008, Italian crime movies seem to have adopted a particular style, distinct from their American counterparts. Although "Suburra", "A Ciambra", or "Dogman" all share decadent settings, dark environments, crude violence, certain common cinematographic and coloring techniques. Sulla mia pelle seems to follow their style, while being thematically more of an 'inquiry' film. It is also a 'slow' film: there is virtually no action whatsoever.

Even though there wasn't any gorgeous setting (as, for instance, in Suburra), I think the cinematography was great, pushed to the best it could be, despite the locations mostly being prison cells or police offices.

In terms of acting, Borghi attempted to do the required transformation for the role, by visibly losing weight, and also worked heavily on his accent, in order to make it as close to Cucchi's one as possible. The end credits let the viewer hear the original recording of a court hearing for comparison. A great performance, but not as dazzling as his work in Sollima's Suburra. Still, he qualifies once again as a talented emerging actor, who I'd like to see more often in films. Borghi, however, doesn't really resemble Cucchi so much as Jasmine Trinca resembles Ilaria Cucchi, Stefano's sister. We frequently saw the real Ilaria in the news, and the similarity is so impeccable, that it almost made me wish to see more of her in the film, even though the focus was not on her.

"Sulla mia pelle" is a valid film in technical terms. It is overall a good film, and I would put it up there together with "Dogman" and "Loro" as one of the best Italian films of the year so far, but lacks some elements that could have made it an ethernal masterpiece.

Set in suburban Rome, this is the true story of Stefano Cucchi, who was arrested for possession of drugs, then fell victim to police brutality. Sounds familiar, even boring, I've-seen-it-all-before fare? Far from it, this is no white Rodney King story, there is no morale here, no heroes or anti-heroes, just a dysfunctional police & penal system and its victims. And the movie? Simply, this is one of the best films produced by the ailing Italian cinema of the 2000s. A grueling, insanely gritty, claustrophobic, intense thriller, boosted by an array of painfully brilliant performances and the documentaristic, crammed with close-ups, direction - reminiscent of Kassowitz's work in La Haine. This is an absolute tour de force. If you're even remotely interested in great storytelling, do not miss it.

It's my first review here on IMDb. I saw this movie today and I had really felt the pain lived by the Cucchi's family. The acting is awesome, assuming that Alessandro Borghi is a superb actor (he played Aureliano in Suburra). In Italy, where I live, the death of Stefano Cucchi has been a matter for many years and it's still today. All hail to Netflix, trying to "do justice" to this judicary case.

A must see, to understand better what Italy really is.

Superb directing & brilliant acting. This film is based on true events highlighting police brutality amongst a few bad apples and the consequences of.

I don't write reviews, even after having seen unforgettable masterpieces. But this time, I have to.

And the reason is Alessandro Borghi. I was first mesmerised by his work in "Suburra: La Serie" and wanted more, so decided to give this a chance, and his performance here is nothing short of transcendent. I don't say this lightly, but it's up there with the work of Daniel Day Lewis in "There Will Be Blood" in quality and realism.

The film portrays the real life events surrounding the arrest of Stefano Cucchi, a low life addict. While in jail, he suffers a beating at the hands of the arresting officers, and that's where the film takes a turn from any standardised narrative you'd expect - the closest thing I can recall was "Fruitvale Station", but I'd claim that this is more powerful and even better acted. The humanity and authenticity captured by the director and cast is closer to the neo-Iranian cinema, than any Hollywood produced movie.

In my humble opinion, Borghi may be the greatest working actor in the world right now, and his tour de force in this picture is a monumental achievement, up there with the best performances in the last few decades.

Highly recommended.