MovieChat Forums > Jindabyne (2006) Discussion > Italian Sunbathers

Italian Sunbathers

posted 16 years ago by NickiDrea
7 replies | jump to latest

I wanted to post this because it is so similar to the plot of this movie:

Naples — Photographs that depict Italian sunbathers relaxing at the beach despite the nearby presence of the bodies of two Gypsy girls who had drowned, have raised questions about Italian attitudes toward the Roma minority, The U.K. Guardian reported.

The incident took place outside of Naples on Saturday. At about 1 p.m., four Gypsy teens, who had reportedly been begging beachgoers, decided to go into the water, despite apparently not being able to swim.

The girls were hit by an unusually large wave, resulting in an attempted rescue by life-savers from a nearby beach. Two of the girls were saved. The other two, aged 14 and 16, could not be reached in time, The Guardian reported.

Following their drowning, the bodies of the two girls were dragged ashore and laid out under beach towels, The Guardian said.

But Italian media later reported that the deaths of the girls and the presence of their bodies did not stop the sunbathers from enjoying their day at the beach, as most continued with their activities.

According to The Guardian, Italy is reportedly plagued by anti-Gypsy sentiments.

Italian newspaper La Repubblica wrote, "While the lifeless bodies of the girls were still on the sand, there were those who carried on sunbathing or having lunch just a few metres away."

Here in the link with a picture of the sunbathers and the bodies: http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,24059338-663,00.html

Much like in the movie, the sunbathers/beachgoers are being lambasted for
still hanging out at the beach while the bodies of two young teen girls were on the sand. Now that it's a "real life" situation, what do people think about this?

I, personally, find it tacky to say the least and disgusting to say the worst.

"The only thing I expect out of lawyers is that they be back in their coffins by sunup."

[–] shoequeen2713 16 years ago

yes i remember seeing this photo on the sky news web site i think. i found it shocking. & yes it does link with the theme of this movie - about our empathy & compassion for our fellow human beings not being something that is influenced or swayed by race/class/religion or gender. at one point claire tells the priest she just wants to stay connected to other people (not those exact words but something similar). the holiday makers showed an utter lack of respect & even contempt for the two young victims & their familes, as did the 4 men in this movie. would they have sunbathed like that if it had been two italien/white/rich girls? no they wouldn't. anyway the police would have been there quicker to protect & secure the area including where the bodies lay. as for the men - would they have been so disrespectful of a young man/white person? stewarts wife does not seem to think so. which is quite a damning observation of your own husband. as she also says to the priest, she just wants to believe her husband is a good man...

[–] Pharaoh-in-de-Nile 15 years ago

Well Gypsies are treated as sub-human in Europe. Of course they are "white" and in fact Indo-European making them a related group of people to most Europeans but they were and are thought of as a sort of feral class...disgusting really.
Slavs seem to be a target for hate as well (especially for scummy BNP* types in the UK who moan on about Polish immigrants).

*British Nazi Party, or "British National Party" as they like to call themselves.

"Nothings gonna change my world!"

[–] cthulhulurks 15 years ago

In fact, "white" and "colored" are relative concepts. How "white" were Scotts and Ires to Angles in earlier centuries? How white were Russians to Nazis? Any group of people may face discrimination in specific circumstances. Try getting something to eat in a fast food restaurant owned and operated by blacks, and you may find out.

Although this film reflects some of it, Jindabyne is much more subtle than just a minority conflict. It is also about how intolerant, infantile and immature a society can act while seemingly trying to act on the basis of tolerance.

my vote history:
http://imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=27424531

[–] raymj777 14 years ago

So, uh, what should the Italian sunbathers have done? Cancelled their plans and left the beach enmasse out of respect for the dead? Built a sandcastle shrine? What? The girls weren't just left to die. A rescue was attempted and, indeed, two girls were saved. The dead were brought to the beach and covered presumeably to wait for the authorities. Those of you complaining about the Italian reaction probably think nothing about slowing down on the highway to gawk at a traffic accident hoping to get a glimpse of another's misfortune.

[–] oldmotem 14 years ago

Just a couple of goombas out for a day of partying on the beach. No problem!
Just think of all the dead bodies in the New Joisey swamps with those sunbathers not far away. I mean, get real. Leave those poor Italians alone. Everybody dumps on them. Just ask old Tony Baloney Soprano.

[–] ContinentalOp 13 years ago

"How "white" were Scotts and Ires to Angles in earlier centuries?"

A good point. The Angles didn't have the concept so they would not have seen themselves as white let alone Scots and Irish. However, I hope you do not mean that the Angles were racist to them, as they actually did not have much contact with them (well, the Scottish Lowlanders in the East are Anglian themselves) to be fair, as they mainly encountered other Angles and Britons. The Angles of Northumbria did form a few famous alliances with Gaels, though.

"Try getting something to eat in a fast food restaurant owned and operated by blacks, and you may find out."

I have and I have not suffered discrimination from them. Although in the UK, there is not as much of a ''race'' war as in the US.

"Namu-myoho-renge-kyo"

[–] thedrells-1 14 years ago

This happened after the Asian tsunami as well. There were lots of photo's of people at the beaches in amongst all the debris and buried bodies. Apparently a lot of insurance companies refused to fly people home afterwards.

Everybody be cool...YOU be cool!