# Corsa dell'innocente, La (1992)

### reviewed by
Pedro Sena

    FILM TITLE:             THE FLIGHT OF THE INNOCENT ( La Corsa
    dell'innocente )
    DIRECTOR:             CARLO CARLEI
    COUNTRY:               ITALY 1992
    CINEMATOGRAPHY: RAFFAELE MERTES
    MUSIC:                    CARLO SILIOTTO
    CAST:                      Manuel Colao, Federico Pacifici, Sal Borgese,
    Lucio, Zagaria, Giusi Cataldo, Massimo Lodolo, Anith Zagaria, Isabelle
    Mantero, Nicola di Pinto, Jacques Perrin
    SUPER FEATURES: Few grest stories will keep you on such an edge.!

              !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There are films that are done just for fun. And then there are films that are made to make a point. And once in a while you get a film that is much more than a film. It is not only a meaningful exercise in the use of the cotton celluloid, but one of those moments when the human spirit and strength stands out, in such a way, that is truly magnificent. And rewarding. And despite all the drawbacks, all the bad times, there is something to be said for those who have the will, and the inner strength to survive. The child is this poignant, and sad, story, is just such a one.

Amidst the Italian wave of kidnappings of children ( the innocent ) for extortion of the richer parents, some make it, some don't. The majority does not. And the extortions continue.

The film starts out with what appears to be a vengeance murder of some sort. The retaliation ends up getting the whole family killed, with the exception of the young boy, who manages to outwit the killers. And he hides in the countryside, and ends up in various spots. some of which have been places where other children previously abducted have met their ill fated death. This child happens to find a backpack of one of the dead children and takes off with it. And he sets about getting to the whereabouts of this dead child's family.

The story takes him to Rome, where he ends up in the house of a cousin, who is also involved in the mess, and gets himself killed as well. The kid, disappears again, but this time he came up, by accident with the loot from another extortion. The kid makes his way to where he wanted to go. And all is well, and seems to be working alright. He stops by a harmless kid soccer game in the street, and eventually sneaks his way into the well to do family's house, and the dead child's room. Eventually the mother discovers him, and in her emotional state, she thinks that this is the right child. The father realizes it's not. And there is another phone call saying that the father should bring the money with him to exchange for the child. The kid sneaks in the car and goes with the father. The rest of the story I will leave with you all, because it is a magnificent story of the strength of the human spirit, and its ability to do the right thing.

There are many outstanding moments in this film. It treats the visionary aspect of the character's mind with respect. And it helps use that ability to keep the young man alive. As if saying that those who use those abilities will make it. Those who do not are bound to be hurt. During a train ride, the kid gets his face caressed ever so gently by a young child, the appearance of which recalls immediately a guardian angel. The smile of this little girl pretty much says it all. This kid is blessed, and will make it, somehow.

Despite the gruesomeness of the film, it is violently brutal, and intentionally so, the child has grown to become a much stronger entity. Be it based on a slight amount of fear or not, the resiliency with which this kid works and thinks is quite above average. A product of a system that is threatening kids like him, he manages to transcend it, and take it to another level.

Few films will do something so powerful, and yet so magnanimously great. It isn't a film that was made to be a super hit, or to tell people that something is really screwed up.... mainly GREED. But it does so, by just being who it is, rather than preach, and that is a small treasure in its own right.

In the middle of it, there are many humanitarian moments, and odd ones. The church getting caught in the middle is an example of the helplessness that many adults feel. The priest does what he can. The rest is providence, and not much that he can do about it. But there are those who really defy the odds, even if innocently so.

The victory is one to remember, and one of those films that just forces many of us reviewers to run for their keyboards. If you don't you just ain't human enough.

Absolutely outstanding film, despite its sad content. Extremely violent, but concise, and clear, in how it deals with it's violence. Those that are in it for the brutality of it, get it the harshest. The rest seem to fall innocently.

If you can stand it, and appreciate the victory of the power of beauty and right, this film is for you. If it is simple entertainment you crave, go for a swim somewhere else. This is a film for the strong.

5 GIBLOONS (c) Copyright Pedro Sena 1994. All Rights Reserved Member of the Internet Movie Critics Association

The review above was posted to the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due to ASCII to HTML conversion.

Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews