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However, this film is not merely a story of economic distress or a beautiful island full of happy, gossiping villagers. The film is based in part on a legend Crialese picked up during his stay there in which a woman the village deems crazy disappears one day and is thought to be dead. She is brought back to life through their collective prayers. Special care is taken to not place the film on socioeconomic quicksand or superficial caricatures of wacky Italians. Grazia is the heart of the story. A woman with an affectionate fisherman husband and three children, she's listless and seen as a little bit crazy with her unorthodox ways. She sings along to the radio, stays in bed when she feels like it and is as watchful over her dogs as she is over her children. Grazia can be just as tumultuous or as calm as the sea around her. She finds respite there and swims nude, much to the dismay of her children. She is tolerated up until she unleashes a flood of violence and the town turns against her after she frees the wild dogs of the island. Redemption becomes crucial, but what must be sacrificed in the process? Lampedusa and small time life are integral to the story. It's a beautiful island with absolutely no economic future other than fishing. Men go off in boats and women work in the canneries. The boys amuse themselves by joining gangs and fighting each other in the ruins; they're slightly more violent than the group masturbation scenes of Malena. The town has an uneasy, violent relationship with the wild dogs that inhabit the island, and her husband Pasquale (Vicenzo Amato) becomes jealous of her pet dog after he finds him in sleeping in his bed. Her relationship with her sons is full of tension as they vie for her affection. From imploring her to wear clothing as she swims to painting her toenails and bossing her around, they compete. There is an undercurrent of incest in that she holds her sexual power over them, but it's certainly not an incestuous relationship. There are other moments of sexual tension as well, as in one endearing scene when girls draw tattoos on the chests of the boys in the town square, only to leave them panting for more. The more dramatic moments of the film are tempered by the affection shown towards the islanders without treating them as souvenirs. The cultural differences between them and the Italians come into play after a relationship blossoms between Grazia's daughter and an Italian policeman. Her younger brother Filippo (scene-stealer Filippo Pucillo) clearly illustrates his contempt. Crialese effectively uses the elements. Water is both redemptive and destructive while fire is purifying. The treeless island is filled with harsh boulders and rocks, and the villagers also have an arid quality that complements the severe environment. The audience can almost smell the stinky fish as well as the stench of blood mopped away by the village women after the wild dogs have been shot. For a mostly non-professional cast the acting is very good. Amato, a sculptor in real life, brings a gentle bear quality to his rough fisherman. Francesco Casisa has a future in front of him as a melancholy heartbreaker and young Filippo Pucillo bubbles over with his intense anger. Golino is perfectly bewitching and possesses both earthly and celestial qualities to make this fable lifelike. Along with her steely strength, the fact that the woman never seems to age only makes her more appealing. For those in need of cinematic poetry, Respiro is a breath of fresh air.
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