Piranhas (2019 film)

Piranhas (Italian: La paranza dei bambini, lit. 'The trawler of children') is a 2019 Italian drama film directed by Claudio Giovannesi. It was selected to compete for the Golden Bear at the 69th Berlin International Film Festival,^[3] where it won the Silver Bear for Best Screenplay.^[4]

Piranhas
Film poster
Directed by	Claudio Giovannesi
Written by	Claudio Giovannesi Roberto Saviano Maurizio Braucci
Based on	The Piranhas: The Boy Bosses of Naples 2018 novel by Roberto Saviano
Produced by	Carlo Degli Esposti Nicola Serra
Cinematography	Daniele Ciprì
Edited by	Giuseppe Trepiccione
Music by	Andrea Moscianese Claudio Giovannesi
Distributed by	Vision Distribution
Release date	12 February 2019 (2019-02-12) (Berlin)
Running time	105 minutes
Country	Italy
Languages	Italian Neapolitan
Box office	$2,285,086[1][2]

Plot

A group of 15-year-old boys from the neighbourhood Rione Sanità in Naples, dreaming to gain power and easy money, make their way on to the city's world of crime. In the unconsciousness of their age, they live between good and evil deeds, thinking that crime can be their only chance of life.

Cast

• Francesco Di Napoli as Nicola
• Viviana Aprea as Letizia
• Alfredo Turitto as Biscottino
• Ar Tem as Tyson
• Carmine Pizzo as Limone
• Ciro Pellechia as Lollipop
• Ciro Vecchione as 'O Russ
• Luca Nacarlo as Cristian
• Mattia Piano Del Balzo as Briatò
• Pasquale Marotta as Agostino Striano
• Valentina Vannino as Nicola's mother
• Adam Jendoubi as Aucelluzzo

Reception

The film received critical acclaim at the 69th Berlin International Film Festival.^[5] The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported that 58% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 36 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Piranhas fails to be anything more than another run-of-the-mill gangster drama."^[6] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 57 out of 100 based on 13 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".^[7] The Upcoming gave it five stars out of five.^[8]

References

1. "Piranhas". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
2. "Piranhas". The Numbers. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
3. "Selection for Competition and Berlinale Special Completed". berlinale. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
4. "Berlinale, 'La paranza' Orso d'argento alla sceneggiatura. Saviano: "Dedico il premio alle ong che salvano migranti"". La Repubblica. 16 February 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2019.
5. "'La paranza' di Saviano emoziona Berlino: "Per quei ragazzi la vita è un videogame in cui non si vince mai"". La Repubblica. 12 February 2019. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
6. "Piranhas (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
7. "Piranhas". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
8. Harvey, Mary-Catherine. "Berlin Film Festival 2019: Piranhas (La Paranza dei Bambini) - Review". Retrieved 17 February 2019.

External links

• Piranhas at IMDb
• Piranhas at AllMovie