Don't Tell

5 stars tells it all

I just didn't quite believe the characters. I'm not sure why. It was like a bunch of actors doing individual screen tests & they photo-shopped it all together into one movie. The design of the film was kind of lush, maybe they put all their effort into that instead of the actual acting or direction, I don't know. I didn't get a sense of any real interaction. I would rather see something much rougher, like Brothers McMullen or something done on a shoestring & shot with handheld video but with incredible heart. This film was not that, not by a longshot. Pretty disappointing considering how great the lead actors are.The Italian spoken by the wife was like nails on a blackboard to me. I wondered if it was actually part of the script to get the flattest, deadest, creepiest, drawl-iest Italian ever spoken by a foreigner so that they could show the disconnect between him & his family or something. I certainly hope so. Because I'm telling you, I had to mute it when she would start to talk.Not my favorite film, but for someone who's trying to learn Italian, every little bit helps.

The movie was s'oposed to be released in the US as early as Fall 2010, but the title, once reviewed still had "contraversial" material that had to be removed thus causing the shipment to be sent back to original destination. The end result is an edited version of the original and so it is hard to compare the two since I had not seen the original in theatres and have not watched this one through to it's entirety. I loved the premise of the story and have similar titles (from the 1980's) before the censorship group in this country garnered so much power and control...these things having been mentioned before in previous reviews. Expect a lot, receive a little...

Overly Dramatic like most Italian Movies. Titillatingly Suggestive material does not have the impact I would expect from this topic. Moves very slow, trying to build interest. Many people gave this high reviews. I say BULLCOOKIES. Needs less Nebulous Drama, and more Direct Substance.

thanks

The writing and directing were fantastic, and Ms. Comencini was able to get wonderful, moving performances from everyone in the film. Highly recommended.

A beautful young woman, actress by profession, is taking care of the final burial arrangements for her parents. The shock of their death only 2 years apart of each other and the fact that they both died of the same illness is haunting her. She becomes restless and unable to function normally. She is paralyzed by nightmares and her best friend (who is blind an in love with her) is unable to help her with her emotional turmoil. It is at that moment she decides to go to he US where her older borther teaches Italian literature at the university in Virginia. She soon learns she is pregnant by her handsome boyfriend actor and the strain from all these changes in her life propell her to talk to her brother in search of answers.It is her visit to the US that helps her bond with her brother who is otherwise unable to connect emotionally even with the members of his family. His wife Anna is understanding and supportuve, but it seems that silent forces are causing their frequent arguments, they are unable to hide even from people and children around them. It is at this moment that both brother and sister have to accept the pain of their childhood sexual abuse by their father. On pretense that they are family, their mother was ignoring the abuse trying to protect their seemingly perfect family appearances.The power of sexual abouse and the mark it leaves on one's life is as traumatic for the participant and emotionally troubling for the outsider. This film addresses the need of childhood abuse survivors to overcome their own guilt and anger and regain ability to establish normacy in their own lives and relationships. It is a daunting task for both victims and people in their lives, but it is fight worth fighting for. The classincal beauty of the leading actress Giovanna Mezzogiorno is mesmerizing. She is so beuatiful that even her best childhood friend in this movie, who is blind, is helplessly in love with her.

Reverently directed by Cristina Commencini, seriously acted by the sublime Giovanna Mezzogiorno ("Facing Windows"), "Don't Tell" ("La Bestia Nel Cuore") fails to make much of an emotional impact despite its central theme of child abuse.Sabina (Mezzogiorno) has a happy marriage but disturbing dreams are troubling her and these dreams drive her to the US to visit her brother, Daniele (Luigi Lo Cascio) to sort things out, get some answers and hopefully find peace.The problem here is that this highly charged story is directed and played with so much objectivity that it is sapped of most of its emotionality and psychic effect which is a shame because Mezzogiorno has several deeply felt and humane scenes. Director Commencini, in her quest to present the facts, forgets that this is a drama and that the facts have to be fashioned and re-worked in order to play effectively on the screenBut drained of its blood and lacking the guts to tell this story with the necessary boldness, "Don't Tell" is ultimately a disappointing waste of talent.

All good

histoire à la fois banale et enigmatique, remarquablement conduite dans ce film et surtout très bien interprétée qui captive le spectateur .