The Caiman Reviews

Good but just a few of clues for a movie that generally is approximate, touching lightly comedy without making you really laugh and human drama staying on the surface, without even pick the timing: a very long prologue of 17 minutes or so about Bruno - a little film producer on the brink of failing with his job and private life - bored me while I was waiting for the real movie to start. I'd prefer to hear about this through a deeper and more diluited story, that could explain better the reasons of his failure. I think Moretti had a good idea in using a cynical point of view to tell about present Italy, always poised between Bruno, who's compelled to produce a movie about Berlusconi just because it's his only chance to save his company, and the young director, an idealist that want to make a movie about Berlusconi no matter what. Although all this, Moretti wasn't able to involve me and the saving grace is made of beautiful scenes when Bruno "dreams" about the film, a dreamy atmosphere of the fairy tale that some Italians persist in believing.

*****

Buoni ma pochi spunti per un film che nel complesso risulta approssimativo, sfiorando la commedia senza mai far ridere davvero e il dramma personale restando però in superficie, senza nemmeno riuscire ad azzeccare i tempi giusti: un lunghissimo prologo di circa 17 minuti sulla vita di Bruno - un piccolo produttore cinematografico sull'orlo del fallimento professionale e privato - mi ha annoiato mentre aspettavo l'inizio del film vero. Avrei preferito sentire la sua storia attraverso un racconto più profondo e più diluito, che potesse anche spiegare le ragioni di questo fallimento. Buona l'idea di Moretti che adotta un punto di vista cinico per raccontare l'Italia di oggi, sempre in bilico tra Bruno, costretto a produrre un film su Berlusconi solo perché è la sua ultima chance di salvare la sua compagnia, e la giovane regista, idealista che che vuole fare un film su Berlusconi a qualunque costo. Nonostante questo, però, non è riuscito ad appassionarmi e quel che si salva alla fine sono le belle scene in cui Bruno "sogna" il film, quell'atmosfera onirica della favola a cui alcuni italiani si ostinano a credere.

Bruno Bonomo (Silvio Orlando), a famous film producer in the 1970s, is about to produce a movie about Christopher Columbus, with the help of the RAI (Italian television network). After director Franco Caspio (Giuliano Montaldo) quits the project, Bonomo offers another screenplay, "Il Caimano", a screenplay, written by young director Teresa (Jasmine Trinca). Soon, Bruno discovers that the Caimano is none other than Berlusconi, Italy's prime minister and media tycoon – and a subject so controversial that even the public television refuses to produce it.
Meanwhile, Bonomo's private life collapses piece by piece; plans to separate from wife Paola (Margherita Buy) come to terms, and the bank is pressing him hard to pay back his debts.
Getting the Caimano movie filmed is the only thing that is keeping him alive and he intends to go through it, even if his main actor also leaves him.

If you are familiar with Moretti’s movies, this should come as no surprise. When Moretti decides to engage political issues in a movie, he does so completely. This film is a bitter and intense presentation of Silvio Berlusconi, Italy’s prime minister. Moretti shows Berlusconi as both a businessman and a politician, a man who claimed for years that he was providing the public what it wanted so much.
Moretti used some real footage of Berlusconi and the scenes shown were very useful in understanding the circumstances leading to the end of Berlusconi.

As for the actors, Moretti as Berlusconi is great; and Silvio Orlando is magnificent as the sad, unattractive producer. Montaldo is a surprise since he is a director himself! He is excellent as an actor.

Part divorce drama, part political satire and part film-within-a-film, IL CAIMANO is an excellent, but tough and thought-provoking movie.

A MUST to understand Italy.