O Sequestro do Papa

Now here's a story that's set some time in the past, although it's not that long ago and it might leave you quite aghast, as a child is abducted by a dogma in sheep's clothing, it will leave you disenfranchised with feelings of hate and loathing; now the outcome isn't pretty but you may learn something new, about conditioning by others that impacted how you grew, the brainwashing and persuasion - indoctrination, education, that was planted in your mind before you fledged, matured and grew; but there's one thing that won't come as a surprise or revelation, that there's masons, cults and cliques that will lead you to damnation, they control the lives of others, keep their secrets under covers, once their hooks have found their mark, you'll get accustomed to prostration.

As a film movie lover, depending on what city I am living in, I broaden my horizons by going to watch films at any festival. Since moving to Vancouver to pursue an education in film production at UBC, I have been excited to visit VIFF and watch a film. After scrolling through the website, I decided to see 'Kidnapped,' an Italian film by Marco Bellocchio. I haven't seen his films before, but I was excited to see this one. The film includes an intense historical drama of a Jewish toddler kidnapped by Pope Pius IX in 1865 because it was believed he had received a secret baptism. It was one of the best films I have seen and deserves more recognition. This rich, operatic film resonates strongly with the audience through the director's storytelling and the emotions portrayed by the actors in the movie.

Or is it strangers than fiction? Well whatever the case (and no pun intended as always of course), the apparently true story of a young boy who is being taken away from his family ... to become something quite ... well different from what he'd otherwise be. And the struggle of the family to become whole again as one might suspect.

Am a bit surprised to see all the awards and nominations - had not heard about this before. But that should not sway you away or take anything from the movie. Sometimes there's movies you just discover like this (and the same probably is true for you) ... by the way kidnapping (in this case literally, so definitely no pun intended) is nothing I would call a discovery ... but what happens after that ... well there is quite the mayhem that ensues ... so don't expect this to pull punches or be soft (action part of it but also the general story) ... there is a text introduction and an ... outro-duction? Not sure what it is called, but you get the meaning surely.

Kidnapping is a crime, and so is "Kidnapped".

Truly astonishing how a truly astonishing story translates into a truly astonishing piece of passable cinema on the big screen. A young Jewish boy, secretly baptized into the Catholic faith by his babysitter, is abducted from his family under religious rule. Crazy, but this is 1857 Bologna, 1857 Italy, and 1857 Pope.

The film is presented in grand oil painting style, with golden lighting, velvety robes a flowing, and evil lurking in the shadows. Looks great. Plays, not so much. Hard to imagine a juicier topic handled with such a soft touch. Everyone involved seems detached of real emotion, instead relying on business like restraint, especially in what should be an inflammatory kidnapping scene. Weird.

The set up is tantalizing enough to give hope, but steam is lost quickly as "Kidnapped" starts to spin its wheels while going nowhere slow.

A tale as such, and it is a true one, begs for a grand, epic treatment, where religion, country and family come together in a clash of Biblical proportions. Instead we get an educational history lesson with easily forgettable characters.

• hipCRANK.

Based on a bizarre true story, this follows the tale of the young Edgardo Sala who was living quite happily with his Jewish parents and siblings in Bologna until an official arrives one evening to tell them he is to be removed from their care. Why? It appears that many years earlier when he was in his cradle, he has been baptised and so must therefore be looked after by the church. Despite their appeals and protestations, he is swiftly taken to Rome where he is enrolled in a Catholic school where his is pretty thoroughly indoctrinated into the ways of his new Church - even becoming of special interest to Pope Pius IX (Paolo Pierobon). The story really centres around the trial many year later of the Papal Officer Feletti (Fabrizio Gifuni) after the city had become part of the Italian Kingdom, and those proceedings are used to fill in some of the backstory and to test the theories of responsibility of actions done in the name of the State. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the young man grows up to become conflicted - his love of Jesus struggles with his love of family and of the Talmud that was so important to him as a child. What I didn't really understand was just why the Pope would ever been at all interested in the fate of a small Jewish lad when the Papal States were in permanent decline, but Marco Bellochio uses a solid cast and a sparing, but frequently impassioned, amount of dialogue to deliver a stylishly made intrigue that show the last vestiges of the once all-powerful Papacy and of the inconsequential hopes of a family and a small boy.