Il Commissario Ricciardi

I came here actually surprised by the low rate given by MADB, but after I realised it is actually worthless, I decided to write a short review to give a more unbiased overview of this mini serie.

It is a crime story with a super-tiny bit of supernatural in it: you can like it or not, it is surely not the main point of the serie, but more like a background perk for the main character.

The crime plots, per se, are average: surely pretty complicated but neither trivial or super shocking.

In my opinion the two strong points that make this serie unique are the setting and the shooting. The setting is the birth of fascism in Italy: the reconstruction of scenes, dresses, habits and feeling is manical! Never seen something so scrupulously precise outside documentaries (and sometimes not even in those). The shooting is also incredible (for Italian stardards): the use of lights and filters gives a feeling like almost being in a comic book.

For me is by far one of the best series from Italy of the last 20 years and an absolute must-see if you like the genre and/or the setting.

I am a lover of multi layered tv series and Inspector Ricciardi delivers that in spades. This is a detective series set in Naples in the 1930s. It has the supernatural in the shape of our hero who is cursed with hearing the voices of the dead, but that helps him to solve his crimes. His sidekick is an overweight police sergeant, who turns out to have a heart of gold and a great source of informants. Each episode is a stand alone mystery to be solved, but we also experience the emotional lives of our two main protagonists as they try to achieve happiness in their personal lives. This thread alone has a number of twists and turns. As might be expected from an Italian series, a lot of the female leads are beautiful.

Add to this that the series takes place in the rise of fascism in Italy, with shadowy characters never far away from the narrative.

It's a great series. Highly recommended.

Beautifully and artfully produced series, set during the period of Mussolini's Fascist regime in Italy.

It is a character-driven series, centering on Ricciardi, a Detective Inspector in the police force, but also a Baron, who shuns the vanities of that ilk.

You get drawn not only into the character of Ricciardi, battling his demons, while yearning for love, but also the lives of the supporting characters he is surrounded by.

I found it to be extremely absorbing, and a captivating storyline, interspersed with the cases he solves.

It is dramatic, and romantic, and tragic, and beautifully done.

I almost gave up on the first episode however I am glad I stuck with it. At first it seemed too twee and saccharine, a bit clichéd. However subsequent episodes have been unexpectedly quite hard hitting and complex. Interwoven is a bittersweet love story, and Naples looks great, with Vesuvius as a dramatic backdrop. The characters are likeable too, and interesting, particularly Bruno and Garzo. I like the elements relating to Mussolini too. All in all a really good detective show. Inspector Montalbano is still my favourite, but I am really looking forward to the second series of this. I recommend this.

Charming crime drama set in one of my favorite time periods. The story is not fast paced but it's not slow. Plots are often complex but driven by simple emotions. Characters are relatable and the actors seem like real life. I hope the next season is released soon!