The Lions of Sicily

As a Sicilian I am very happy that for once they try to do a series that does not talk about the mafia and the bad things that has this territory. Here instead they try to give prestige to the most illustrious family of Sicily that has done so much good for Sicily and Sicilians by giving work to many families. I liked the actors, even if they are not all Sicilians have learned Sicilian well and have made the product very credible. I liked the shooting and I recognized almost all the places, on the other hand the sicily is beautiful and the shooting at the port were made in cefalù a fantastic village near palermo. I hope so much that they will make the second season that will talk about the Targa Florio the oldest motorist race in the world, and that passes by my village.

Despite some really solid actors, the characters are generally not very convincing and the overall feel of the series is more like the beloved Italian soap operas of today. The scenery and overall story of rags to riches is interesting enough, but this production just doesn't quite hit the mark. Too much going on and with too many flashbacks make it quite 'messy' and not fluid or flowing to take the viewer along or care what happens. My main complaint though is that the whole series was overwhelmed by the constant intrusion of bizarre and inappropriate modern music. Why was this even necessary? It totally put me off and the mute button was used extensively. The time period is well represented by the details and the focus on the different societal stratas and population that struggled to make a living. You can see where and how and why the mafia evolved from this society. It could have been more interesting than it was. A shame, as the concept and real story it is based on are worth knowing about.

If you would like to watch it in Italian with English subtitles you have to click to watch on the I Lioni di Sicilia, if you click on the The Lions of Sicily then it will be dubbed in English and it pretty awful to hear. I speak Italian so Im glad to see it in the original language.

I am writing this because some of the reviewers here have mentioned how horrible the dubbed version is, and it seems enough of you don't know how to get it in the spoken language without dubbing, which can be viewed of course with the english subtitles. I hope to have helped some of you.

Enjoy it in Sicilian, I love hearing it.

Based on the book by Stefania Auci that recounts the rise of one of the most influential families of the Italian medidione from their arrival in Sicily in the late 1700s to the Unification of Italy, the series is a bet gone wrong. Despite the enormous production effort and a very interesting cast, among which Michele Riondino stands out, the story fails precisely in portraying the characters, who are monolithic and lacking depth.

The richness of Sicily is well represented by the magnificent palaces, but the exteriors, thanks also to a gloomy cinematography, do not do justice to Palermo, where it seems that there is only Piazza Pretoria, and a port awkwardly recreated by rather approximate VFX.

This is a great series. The English is horrible. But, you can change it to Italian, French etc. Likewise the subtitles. This is the saga of a family that has a lot of ups and downs. At times it's frustrating to watch. But a great series.

All the reviews that talk about the language thing have not tried to change the language. There are options. I like the series and do not understand how the complainers never thought to look. You don't like something and never look to see if you can change it? Seriously?

I hope that they choose to do more with it. I would love to see another part of this saga.