The Sicilian (1987) User Reviews

Salvatore Giuliano, Folk Hero or Mobster?

[nzallblacks_12 · 6/10 · 7 November 2011]

For entertainment value, Cimino's 'The Sicilian' does not deliver in the Hollywood sense. That's good in my opinion.

It viewed some where between documentary and romantic fairy tale. Maybe to many, the latter choice would be more appropriate. I'd place Sicilian, Salvatore Giuliano or Lambert's portrayal smack in the middle. That's because even after doing much research I'm still not sure who the real character was. Probably, no one really knows for sure.

The plot moves along fine except for the opening flashback from Turturro's cell. Cimino should have axed the scene first cut. The inclusion of the American governess did not help the story line either. In fact, she, the actress gave an unconvincing and unflattering portrayal of Americans (the rich ones) living abroad. At times she swore like a trooper. Most of the film she sounded and looked like a hooker in communist garb, designer that is. I was so glad when she fell off the reel.

The rest of supporting cast was complementary. Giuliano's accomplices were good enough and just bad enough to add intrigue. Even the crotchety old professor was a good fit as interlocutor between Giuliano, his loyal band of unhappy bandits, the fickle mob and the stripe changing church.

The film's one weakness is the behind the scene's love affair between the Mafia Don and Giuliano. I found it confusing. Do competing mobsters profess such unrequited love? Perhaps they do in Sicily.

If you're looking for something in the genre of the non-stop murderous mobster films, then give this one a miss. However, if you are fascinated with Sicily and their mysterious culture, 'The Sicilian' will give you some good glimpses of the stunning mountain terrain, cosmopolitan Palermo and its people both big and small, good and bad.

Cimino's real worst (yet still better than many films out there)

[Rodrigo_Amaro · 5/10 · 17 June 2014]

"Heaven's Gate" was Michael Cimino's worst film and one of the worst of all time? Never. The troubled making of it was a disaster, indeed, but the movie is almost a masterpiece and a good film on its own. The ones that came after Cimino's "ban" from Hollywood are the excellent "The Year of the Dragon", the average "Desperate Hours", his last "The Sunchaser" (a nice film for those with eyes to see), and this one "The Sicilian", adaptation of Mario Puzo's novel and based on the life of criminal Salvatore Giuliano. In my humble opinion, this is his worst film. Confusing, ineffective and trapped in a weird chaotic fashion with scenes going from good to painfully bad. But it's better to blame on Steve Shagan's script and the studio who trimmed down the film in a few minutes making the story even more confusing than what already is.

What we gather is that Giuliano (played by a dreadful Christopher Lambert) and his Sicilian group of criminal peasants cause horror in Sicily stealing land from its rich owners and giving to the poor, working for the cause of making Sicily independent. He defied politics, the church and everyone against his actions. His popularity was so great that even a powerful mafioso (like the one played by Joss Ackland) gave him some support until the day his arrogance for more power drives him off course, and no one's there to help him anymore. I guess this film could be called "Salvatore Giuliano: The Beginning" as it ends from the part where Francesco Rosi's good classic begins with the disastrous and controversial investigation about the mysterious robber's murder, a political crime that devastated Italy.

If built on the same tradition of "The Godfather", with substance and greatness it would have turned out to be a great endeavor. However, it all looks phoney, simplistic and we feel as if watching a poor version of "Scarface". Another story about a man trying so hard to be a powerful criminal, difference is that he has some ideals of respect, justice and fights for others though he's no hero - but he seems more reliable than all the other corrupted Italian institutions. And in Giuliano's role, Lambert comes off a stiff, unnatural, only pleasing to look at when he's dressed with his elegant trench-coat. Ruined the movie just as much as Barbara Sukowa as the American lady who "rapes" the gangster.

And there are qualities to be found in this Cimino work, qualities that remind us of his previous works. The cinematography bears similarities with the shots captured in "The Deer Hunter" and "Heaven's Gate" and Vilmos Szigmond is not the director of photography here yet it looks like one of his works; David Mansfield score has its moments; Mr. Ackland was a strong presence, as John Turturro as well, playing Giuliano's best friend. It's the story that is wrong. I couldn't get anything from it, no life, no truth, nothing new.

Worthy of a view? Maybe, out of curiosity. Bear in mind that Cimino lost his mojo with this thing with badly staged scenes (but some horrifying and effective moments as well, demonstrated in the barber's execution in front a whole village after being discovered as a traitor who denounced Giuliano) and no story to work with. The book has to be ten thousands better to get ruined this way. 5/10

Soap opera level melodrama

[smatysia · 5/10 · 16 January 2013]

I read the novel by Mario Puzo quite a few years ago, but do not remember a thing about it, unlike most other Puzo works that I have consumed. So, maybe the source material was a bit lacking. If I remember correctly, Michael Cimino had already destroyed one studio, and well, I don't know how much was invested in this one, but I hope not too much. Cimino was obviously shooting for the sweeping epic, but ended up hitting soap opera level melodrama. The high points were the scenery, the cinematography, and the score. The low points were the plot and the acting. Christopher Lambert badly needed a charisma injection before trying to play this part. Joss Ackland was adequate as the mafia don, and Terence Stamp as the enigmatic prince, but the rest of the cast, ick. Cannot recommend this one.

The complete European-release version is extraordinary

[mjsprech · 27 January 2001]

The European-release version of "The Sicilian" is 31 minutes longer than the US version. Supposedly, the director was ordered to deliver a version under 2 hours, so he recut the film to render it incoherent with the expectation that Fox would have to release the complete film. Only, they went ahead and released the deliberately botched shorter cut. This may be apocryphal, but it would help explain the critical drubbing it got in this country. I was lucky enough to see the complete film in Paris and was mesmerized. Gore Vidal was denied credit for the screenplay, but the film has a literacy, intellectual depth and acidity that is pure Vidal; the character played by Terrance Stamp is essentially Vidal's stand-in. The only comparable film might be "The Godfather," but with an even stronger historic/political context. It is certainly the highpoint of Michael Cimino's career to date, and I'm one of those odd ducks that fervently admires "Heaven's Gate". If you can see this in Europe, or if it comes out over there on DVD and you have a region-appropriate DVD player, grab the opportunity to see it.

Cimino does "epic" again - with predictably awful results

[simonsayz-1 · 3/10 · 9 February 2009]

Cimno obviously hadn't learned from "Heaven's Gate", which isn't the disaster it's made out to be, just too long and too caught up in its subplots. "The Sicilian" copies the mistakes, but this time around it doesn't even have the beauty or breath of "Heaven's Gate". Nor its good actors. Christopher Lambert is a disaster in the title role. He tries to get by on his good looks and roguish twinkle in the eye, but his charisma is non-existent and it's hard to believe him as a folk hero who can move the masses. Helena Sukova is also a disappointment. Terrence Stamp's performance is hard to measure fairly, due to a poor dubbing job inflicted on him in post production. Only John Torturro as his usual nervous self is worth the money, as is Joss Ackland as the don of dons in Sicily.

Apart from the acting problems, this film is also spectacularly dull. Cimino stretches a repetitious, drawn-out story over almost two and a half hours, when 90 minutes and some judicious editing would have served him better here. Because things shuffle on at a snail's pace and many scenes seem completely superfluous (also known as the "Heaven's Gate" syndrome), the viewer quickly loses interest. Which in turn is a problem with this densely plotted and at times confusing film. There are so many betrayals, broken deals and secret alliances, that at some point the viewer is bound to be confused, especially if he's trying to keep up interest in a movie that doesn't deserve it. Seriously, give "Heaven's Gate" a try instead of this. You might lose an additional hour of your life, but you'll be awarded with a flawed epic instead of this epic failure.

Worth watching

[filmtodeath · 6/10 · 21 August 2005]

This film is not as bad as many say. It is somewhat melodramatic at times, but not too often. I really enjoy watching it and recommend it. The main problems with the movie are, the music and acting. The opening song in the film is great and it leads you to believe the film will be a near masterpiece. But there is this one song that is used during some romantic moments, and it just plain sucks. It kills any effect the film had. Then there is the acting. Lambert is one of the worst actors i have ever seen. Simple. However, this movie is probably his best work. The violence in the film is intense which keeps your attention and the cinematography is rather beautiful (One of Cimino's greatest abilities) So, if you can find a copy, watch it.

Go Back to 1962

[jamesleggio-40957 · 5/10 · 25 May 2016]

One of the underlying problems with Michael Cimino's film is that it makes the remarkable Sicilian countryside do too much of the narrative work. If you were to watch the film with the sound turned off -- saving you from the stilted dialogue and the gushy score -- you might think much better of the whole enterprise, so powerful is the photography of those rugged mountains and steep canyons. But everything is so visually splendid that it undermines any sense that the poor are actually suffering and starving out there. A travelogue does not always make for good storytelling. And, of course, the pan-and-scan version, the only one currently available on DVD, chops out most of the landscape, limiting the impact of the movie's visual achievement.

Another problem for Cimino's film is that there's actually a much better version of the same story from an earlier director. Few people seem to be aware of the earlier treatment. In 1962, the great Italian director Francesco Rosi released his superb version under the title "Salvatore Giuliano." It's in black and white, but gloriously so. The massacre of the peasants in Rosi's version is one of the most heartbreaking and dramatically memorable sequences in the history of Italian film. And throughout, the dark ambiguity of the main character remains consistently compelling, within a far more complex storytelling mode than Cimino's surprisingly straightforward Hollywood-inflected retelling. The Rosi film deserves to be much better known.

Weak movie arising from strong book

[BeneCumb · 6/10 · 10 August 2014]

Mario Puzo has given the world many novels and scripts becoming the basis for fine movies, e.g. The Godfather trilogy. As for The Sicilian, the screenwriters made it a dubious historical action movie, with an odd choice for the leading role - Christopher "The Highlander" Lambert who obviously lacked the features characteristic to e.g. Robert DeNiro or Al Pacino. The result is a kind of Italian Zorro or Viva Zapata!, with beautiful but difficult-to-remember women; luckily, there are some fine supporting performances, particularly John Turturro as Gaspare "Aspanu" Pisciotta and Joss Ackland as Don Masino Croce, and real Italian atmosphere. But the 2+ hours was too much, there were many scenes not providing additional value, and some lines-links could have been totally avoided. But first of all, one could have a real choice whether to make an adventure movie or mafia movie.

Thus, unless you have decided to see everything connected to Puzo or Lambert, or Turturro, skip The Sicilian.

Really awful

[bakovljev · 2/10 · 4 April 2003]

This must be one of the really awful films of all time, which belongs in the bottom 100. Must admit to having ignored the score and comment on the site here and purchased the DVD. Terrible mistake.

I figured a Cimino directed Puzo film couldn't be that bad - it was. The acting is generally poor with a few exceptions. Notably, Joss Ackland, John Turturro and Giulia Boschi come out with some credit. Christopher Lambert, however, fails to carry the movie, and is as wooden as it gets. Even the Sicilian swagger fails to impress. Barbara Sukowa also is a let down, despite the odd sight of flesh.

Cimino is a mega let down. It is as if there were a few scenes left over on the cutting room floor from the Godfather - marvelous scenery though it is - clipped together with a hastily put together script. To add to it all, the editing leaves a lot to be desired.

I gave it 2/10, but only due to the scenery and score (which also may have been a hand-me-down from the Godfather).

flawed but worth watching

[ib011f9545i · 7/10 · 26 April 2020]

I saw this in a little cinema in West Wales when it came out. It is a beautiful looking film with with some good acting in it. But Mr Lambert's performance is not very good. If you don't know the film is about a real life 1940s Sicilian bandit. Same subject as the Italian film Salvatore Giuliano. The script is good at times an awful at other times. I assume I saw the longer version in 1987,certainly this is the version I have on dvd. This film has a poor reputation but I argue that at least in the longest version it is worth seeing. If you like The Mafia films such as The Godfather and Once Upon A Time In America you will like this.

bad epic

[SnoopyStyle · 5/10 · 25 January 2016]

It's post-war Sicily. Salvatore Giuliano (Christopher Lambert) and his friend Pisciotta (John Turturro) steal grain for the poor. They are stopped by the police and Salvatore kills one of them. They steal two horses from land gentry Prince Borsa (Terence Stamp) during the escape. Salvatore catches the eye of Borsa's American wife Camilla (Barbara Sukowa). Salvatore takes on the conservative land owners, the church and the mafia to steal for the poor peasants. Mafia Don Masino Croce (Joss Ackland) is willing to use Salvatore at first until he becomes too powerful.

Director Michael Cimino has grand designs. Sometimes his visuals work and sometimes they don't. I admire the attempt. The story is a muddle. There is no flow. The center of the problem is his casting. I don't understand what he's trying to do. Christopher Lambert is more or less French American but he's playing a Sicilian. Barbara Sukowa is German and yet she's playing an American. At least, she gives off a sense of superiority. He is as stiff as a board. He has certain limits as an actor and this movie shows many of them. I find the first act memorable but the movie crumbles as it goes on.

I like it

[Charles_Bronson · 8/10 · 6 May 2004]

Despite the score of 4.8/10, I still picked up The Sicilian in the DVD bargain bin since I liked Christopher Lambert in Highlander and Fortress. I'm not gonna say Christopher Lambert is the greatest actor in the world but I guess he did OK in this. They've got some good supporting actors such as Joss Ackland and John Turturro that bring life to the movie. I like this movie a lot. It is MUCH better than the trash Lambert has starred in the past five years [i.e. Fortress 2, Absolon]. This movie deserves more than a 4.8...more like a 6.5+. Michael Cimino has got to be one of the greatest directors ever but I guess after Heavens Gate, people lost faith in him. Oh well. If you're looking for a spin-off Godfather type movie with the 'Highlander', it's worth a rent.

Lambert = wooden

[msolini3 · 1/10 · 31 March 2005]

This is a fantastic story about rebellion against the odds, Mario Puzo's Novel is a splendid read. However, Christopher Lambert acting is completely wooden. Absolutely awful. He straight out looks and speaks like an American with a terrible attempt at a Sicilians accent. Very annoying to people that have read the book and looked forward to decent story being told. Too much emphasis on the relationship between the duchess and not Giovanna. Gives the viewer the impression of a stronger love connection (when it was just sex for revenge/future plans) between the duchess than when Giovanna (his true love in the book) sat by the sidelines. Crappy casting and a poorly adapted novel seems like Michael Cimino just missed the whole plot. could of been so much more. Oh well read the book instead.

Not such a bad movie

[richusa555 · 25 October 2004]

This is a very well made movie, especially as it concerns scenery and camera angles. However, the tempo of the movie is a little slow and after the initial fifteen minutes or so its seems to emphasize a lot on character development rather then unraveling a plot quickly to keep you interested. This movie gave me the impression that it was intended for a more subdued audience. Eventually it picks up here and there with some violent retribution from those that have betrayed Giuliano.

I can't emphasis enough about the scenery since that seemed to compensate for the poor dialogue a lot of the time. John Turturro was great in this movie as well as Chris Lambert. The character of Don Masino carried this movie as your classic stolid and shrewed mafia boss and Giuliano, whom Masino admires, poses a threat to his power.

This Sicilian will make you an offer you can refuse.

[col_rutherford · 5/10 · 11 June 2006]

Based on the novel by Mario Puzo, which was in turn loosely inspired by the life of bandit, black marketeer, and separatist Salvatore Giuliano, "The Sicilian" is a confusing, self-important mess of a movie. As was the case with Rob Roy, Jesse James, and Bonnie and Clyde, popular culture once again whitewashes the acts of a real-life criminal and reinvents them as a folk hero. Set in Sicily during the 1940s, the film begins with Giuliano (Christopher Lambert) and his friend Pisciotta (John Turturro) stealing grain to feed hungry villagers. Caught in the act, Giuliano escapes after shooting a police officer, but he is seriously wounded himself (despite his life-threatening injury, Giuliano still manages to outrace the authorities and leap onto the back of a horse!). Giuliano seeks shelter in a monastery and is treated by a barber who says he will certainly die. However, Giuliano declares that he will live and makes a miraculous recovery. Giuliano's (near) death and resurrection is obviously intended as an allusion to Christ. I'm not a religious person, but I still think there's something blasphemous about comparing a thief and murderer to the Messiah.

Once fully healed, Giuliano launches a crusade to provide the poor people of Sicily with land and counter the authority of the Mafia, the Catholic Church, and the wealthy landowners. To accomplish this he becomes a bandit and flees to the mountains, eventually assembling a large following. However, Giuliano goes too far, makes powerful enemies, and (in another parallel with Christ) is betrayed by a Judas in his ranks.

If executed properly, "The Sicilian" could have been a powerful, complex tale of a man who does terrible things for noble reasons and ends up undermining everything he fought for. Unfortunately, the motion picture is plagued by poor choices. Various accents are spoken by the international cast, very few of which sound remotely Sicilian. Christopher Lambert in particular is miscast. Supporting characters come and go without contributing much to the story. Numerous factions become involved in the plot - the government, the Mafia, the church, the nobility, and the socialists - but it's not always clear whom is allied with whom or why. Many scenes were cut from the finished film by the studio and the audience can tell.

"The Sicilian" was directed by Michael Cimino, who has a very mixed track record. After directing one of the greatest movies of all time, "The Deer Hunter", Cimino was responsible for the notorious commercial and critical disaster "Heaven's Gate" (which, in retrospect, is actually not that bad). Cimino recovered somewhat with the crime thriller "Year of the Dragon", but "The Sicilian" was another step backwards for his career. Cimino at least insures that the film is well shot, but his deadly serious intentions are frequently undermined by weak performances, clunky dialogue, and schmaltzy music.

** out of ****

Dancing

[grahamcarter · 1/10 · 20 May 2008]

For the record, I'm not a Cimino knocker. I liked Thunderbolt & Lightfoot, I initially thought the Deer Hunter was overrated, but it's grown on me. I actually like Heaven's Gate (although the last third drags - and in a film of that length a third is a LONG time)... it also is obvious that it shouldn't have cost that much (The book on the making of it, Final Cut is a must read). Year Of The Dragon, I liked, even with the stereotyping and awful leading lady (where did she disappear too?)

I just want to make a short and simple comment - worst dancing scene ever by an actor. Joss Ackland, the singing and dancing fool. Also, Cimino needs to seriously get out of this 'I want to be like Coppola' thing... it's not working. The Sicilian is junk.

It's hard to tell if Cimino is talented or if he has a habit of picking good cinematographers... the only good point in The Sicilian

A pretentious campy Godfather!

[stiftap · 1/10 · 14 November 1998]

You can't be serious. This movie could have been great. It's got tragedy and struggle at its heart. The score is mournful and sufficiently mody. The direction and photography are at times beautiful and inspired. But the hard-boiled and wooden acting - combined with some of the most ridiculous dialouge - takes all seriousness right out of this over-achieving film. The only true hope within this waste of money is the always brilliant, John Turtorro. Watching him act one gets the idea that he knows the dialogue is ridiculous and acts up the campiness accordingly. Look out for a scene late in the film when he visits the cardinal to retrieve a message for Guliano. AS he walks back, he stumbles over a coffee table, in effect pulling the wind right out of the drama!

Terrible movie

[ruffwarrior · 1/10 · 17 October 2013]

If, like me, you are attempting to get the great satisfaction that gave reading "The Sicilian", by Mario Puzo, watching this movie you will be highly disappointed. It has virtually nothing to do with the book, although it claims to be based on the novel. No character corresponds to the age, temper or intelligence attributed to them on the novel. It's clear a movie cannot recreate a book completely, but this one goes the extra mile and butchers it without mercy. Spoiler alert: it leaves out important relationships like Giuliano's with his mother and La Venera and makes up another with the Contessa. All the human, great stuff of the book is left out. This movie is just terrible.

A movie with some political comment.

[diane-34 · 9/10 · 29 May 2008]

In keeping with one of the movie's subplots, I confess to being a total Cimino fan. I have loved the four films that I have bought on DVD and I believe he is a much underrated director.  I just finished The Sicilian several minutes ago and I, as opposed to the last commentators, loved the film, did not fall to the floor in hysterical laughter and did not think that Cimino wanted to become Scorsese in the worst way. I thought the script was thoughtful and one of the few films to confront the historical political skeleton hanging in every Italian closet--the skeleton of land redistribution and the ghosts that haunt,to this day, the society of old Italy. The people of Bologna and Emilia-Romangna understand this but the Scicilians still rely on the Mafia. Of course, everyone sees in a film that which they are programmed from childhood to see; for me, however, I saw a deeper film than other commentators saw and as a result, I watched a far better film--a film of great substance with the rough beauty of the Scicilian countryside and the Scililian cityscapes bared for all to appreciate. The historicity of Cimino's films produce a memorable panoply of substance, painted on a canvas of great beauty. I loved the actors and I loved all that they did on the screen; I applaud Cimino for his artistic brilliance. I am hugely saddened that there is nothing comparable in today's Hollywood cinema.

Ahh- the Sicilian

[Indy-11 · 2/10 · 18 May 2007]

Oh, this movie wanted to be the "Godfather" in the worst way, boy did it ever. Unfortunately it was about as far from that masterpiece as it could possibly be. After watching "Heaven's Gate" a few years ago, I wanted to see if Cimino could make something as bad. My curiosity was correct- this is plain awful.

Lambert at one point in the film says in his horrific wooden accent, "Everyone muss know, I am ah serious man". That had me on the floor laughing. I understand the film was edited and cut by the studio, but what I saw today barely makes any sense. The scenes seemed hastily put together with no coherence whatsoever. The camera angles and lighting were awkward and unsettling. And what is with the "rape" scene in the middle of the film? And where did the American governess disappear to for the rest of the movie? Half the time we don't know who is on who's side, and who is about to betray each other, and...oh why bother! Another scene that had me in stitches was mentioned by another reviewer: the awkward Don dancing scene. It really looked like one of those ballroom scenes from the Muppet Show.

What a mess.

The gifted Director is a brilliant post-modern architect of the film industry.

[iunicorn · 17 August 2000]

Cimino is one of the very rare species on earth that can create a "MOOD' that leads to the very cradle of western civilization. The Roman Empire. As a foreigner who has lived in an Italian town for a year, I come to see that the colossal heart of every Italian man can only be captured with its gist by Cimino. And no other up till date. It comes from lighting, its shadow, its colours, its smell even on screen, its silhouettes, its accents, its breathing space, and his very own colossal heart that can contain it all. You do feel that he has achieved that sacred task in showing us THE SICILIAN. Nobody has that feeling ever been captured with rapture that its texture is almost noble, royal, yet sacred. But in its careful craftsmanship of Cimino, you find it everywhere, and it is just everywhere that overflows: its costumes, its lighting, its camerawork, its juxtaposition, its projections, so on and so forth. Its tempo of the film makes you flow like a river that breeds lives and cultures at the very same time.

Better called The Petrified Forest

[dolaliz · 3/10 · 28 December 1998]

Wooden from the getgo. Predictable behaviour in a stew of accents. The only particular joy was in a very louche performance from Terence Stamp (have a look at his curious riding style!). I thought Michael Cimino would be capable of much more than this.

Puso's romanicism fails to satisfy

[jakob13 · 3/10 · 20 February 2021]

Eric Hobsbawn deemed Salvatore Guiliani a "social bandit". Francesco Rosi' neorealistic documentary is an exercise in eonomic, political and social, in perspective with diminishing lines flowing into infinity in shapes of stunted trees, huge rocks and burnt earth of an eternal Sicily. It is a setting of a feudal Sicily, seeming unchanged yet churning with the molten fire of Mount Etna rady to spew its flames and anger. It is the Sicily of Guiseppi di Lampadeusa. Cimino's "The Sicialian", Salvatore Guiliani is based on Mario Puso's novel; it has the feel of "The Godfather", a grand romance of violence brought forth from thr loins of the peasantry, hungry for the fallow hectares of seigniorial estates, a thirst not slaked since the 15 century. Land and bread a powerful call for action that in postwar Sicily the Communist Party gave voice to. Guiliani, a bandit, violent, charismatic, heard the same siren can, but he was a social reactionary who allied himself with the landowners, the dons, the clergy whp feared him but kneww he served their purposes, whilst scheming to betray Guiliani when the peasantry and the Communists were put down. Puso's Guiliani is a crude Lord Byron, hardly the the mystical Emiliano Zapata. And yet his name was known everywhere in Sicily, in Italy and beyond. And perhaps it is today, but we cannot say so for sure. A sexual toy of the landed aristocracy, handsome and highly sexual, but a play thing for the forces that abhor change and an attack of age old privileges. We cannot expect more from the excellent cast, talented though they may be, could not rescue a faulty script.

I lost the will to live

[ehafvk · 1/10 · 26 June 2022]

I've seen better acting in school nativity plays. Some real A listers will be wanting to blot this one from their resume!

Appalling, turgid, poorly acted... really don't waste your time.

Disappointing...

[sabrina_rahn · 4/10 · 25 April 2021]

I really don't get it. The book is very suspenseful and emotional while this is a narcissistic cliché story of some men whose motivations, feelings and actions are so vague and hypocritical that I can't stand it. The dialogue is terrible, unrealistic talk that tries to have a philosophical effect through empty phrases. It is not even pursued to make the plot particularly biographical, realistic or in any way more exciting, so that the deviations from the book would have made sense in any way. And no, I don't want to see an iron smooth, glorified freedom fighter here either, but such a superficial, arrogant, snob whose main characteristic it is to look good and isn't able to say more than "I do what I have to do, I'm Guiliano", no one needs either.

In general, all characters are either incredibly superficial or aloof and dislikeable , regardless of whether they are "villains", "victims" or others involved. Not to mention the bad and stiff acting of most the cast. (The only good who is worth mentioning is John Turturro.)

It's a shame, I think both, the real story and that of Mario Puzzo have the potential to make an exciting film, but honestly, you don't have to watch this one.