Kidnapped: The Abduction of Edgardo Mortara

Bellocchio should be credited for shining a light on a forgotten pivotal event, but the real Mortaras deserve that light to be a little less dull.

A testament to the insidiousness of systemic abuse, Kidnapped illuminates the tragedy of unchecked power exploited by men.

A top-notch film that no film buff, who so admired being one, should miss. [Full review in Spanish]

Edgardo, played as a youngster by Enea Sala and as a young man by Leonardo Maltese, is a figure locked so tightly in a nightmare that he eventually succumbs to it. His story, in the hands of a master, is both compelling and chilling.

Now, at moments Kidnapped feels old-fashioned. Yet Bellocchio never falls into boring costume drama realism. Working in a painterly style, he pushes things toward the operatic.

“Kidnapped” has its problems, but it is gripping.

Without a doubt, this incredible true event that shows the antiquity of anti-Semitism and the brutal conversion attempts that the Jews suffered, deserved to be brought to the big screen.

Even the victims of religious prejudice are apparently not immune to its viral effects. Perhaps there is a lesson for the Church today in the film’s message, ham-fisted though it may be.

In its portrayal of the inflexibility of those who purport to serve divine will, this film is both extremely effective and chilling.

Rapito is not only a portrayal of the persistence of antisemitic myths, but also a reflection on how these ideas continue to resurface during politically convenient times, making it highly relevant to the present moment. [Full review in Spanish]