MovieChat Forums > Io non ho paura (2004) Discussion > THE BOOK

THE BOOK

posted 18 years ago by krimet
4 replies | jump to latest

Hi.

I've just read the book and have yet to see the film, I have some questions which would be nice if someone could help me answer them.

1. Why was the boy in the hole, i gather that he was kidnapped and all the parents were in on it. but why? there didn't appear to be any plea for a ransom so i'm confused why they had the boy.

2. I had read here that Michele lived and that the story was retrospective, Michele revisiting a memory. But I didn't seem to find anywhere in the book that gave the idea that this was the case, i thought he died at the end of the book. Can someone please tell me where it gives the idea that the book is retrospective?

- It's good to be spanked, but it's better to be KANE'd.

[–] gunshotglitterqueen 18 years ago

It was a common occurance in the 70's for children to be kidnapped from their families for ransom by the mafia. The region in which the book is set is in the deep south, not far from sicilia, which as we all know is notorious for its relation to the mafia. It's the same case for regions such as Calabria. Anyway - yes Fillipo was kidnapped by the adults in hope of receiving some ransom money. Filippo is meant to have come from a rich background.

The man from Brazil is meant to be a mafia man.

& did you read the italian book or the transcript? a lot can be lost in translation.

[–] krimet 18 years ago

I read the english translation.

Thanks for that, it clears alot up. It seemed strange that Salvatore was friends with all the other kids, because his family was farely wealthy, I didn't expect him to be friends with people of lower class. (They should have kidnapped Salvatore, lol.)

- It's good to be spanked, but it's better to be KANE'd.

[–] alina05 18 years ago

They kidnapped Filippo for money, but this has nothing to do with mafia: actually this film and this book don't show anything about mafia.

In the book it's quite clear that it's a retrospective story, because in several points Michele speaks as an adult looking back at his past: once he talks about a problem he had ten years later, when he was nineteen and went on the mountaines to ski; again he says how much his small village changed in the following years, and in another passage he remembers himself facing his fears as a child and he refers to himself saying "now, as an adult". All this, at least, in the Italian original version of the book.

[–] Paul-nyc 10 years ago

It's obvious that Michele survived. How else would he able to recount what had happened ?
If you need further proof, around page 23, Michele tells us that he is writing 22 years after the event. He mentions that he is surprised that
Barbara remained friends with his group, given that they behaved badly towards her.