Earlier this year I shared my top 10 of favourite gangster movies, which is one of my favourite genres. When I heard that Stefano Sollima, who in the past has been responsible for Romanzo Criminale and TV show Gomorra, had made a new gangster movie I was immediately interested and had high expectations of it.
With a running time with more than two hours Sollima takes his time to set up the story, which is set in Rome and its various districts (even the Vatican). Plans have been set in motion to turn the town of Ostia near the coast into the Las Vegas of Italy. It’s a project where everyone will be able to make a lot of money, but with trouble on governmental level the mob needs to increase the pressure to make sure that a vote is cast on it before new elections happen. But there is more going on, which leads to some inevitable confrontations between various groups, which aren’t always friendly.
It takes a while before Suburra grabs a hold of you, but without noticing Sollima places his pawns and once he decides to attack you as a viewer get pulled in. You witness how a corrupt politician tries to convince others to vote a specific way, lives a life of drugs and wild sex before heading home to his wife and son. There is also a young mob boss who doesn’t have much respect for the other gangs, which leads to some problems. A businessman also is slowly pulled into the world of the mafia without him wanting to because it’s the only way he will be able to survive. The end result is a delicate balance between showing the stakes for all of the people involved and at the start of the film Sollima already informs you by title cards something big is about to happen. The movie ends in a sizzling set of events in the only way you can expect from this type of movie: with a lot of violence. For fans of the genre this is a must-see, an atmospheric impression of criminal life in Rome.
I like gangster films though some are too violent for me. The Rome setting does appeal to me though, I’ll be up for renting this one Nostra. Btw, if you like gangster flicks, I recommend Beeba Boys which is a Punjabi gangster set in Vancouver. I saw that earlier this year and was really impressed w/ it.
Yeah, I read your review and added it to my IMDB to watch list. Unfortunately the official website for the movie is offline, but I’ve sent a FB message asking when it will be available here.