Sicilian Letters

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https://italianfilmfestival.com.au/

Date Reviewed: 06/09/2025

Sicilian Letters, directed by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, presents a poetic, slow-paced feature where “nothing is new under the sun” and the audience gains access to the inner life of a mafia boss contemplating “what values matter to you.” These two direct quotes from the film encapsulate the philosophical exchanges between mafia boss Matteo and his lifelong family friend, Catello.

Unlike traditional crime dramas, Grassadonia and Piazza deliver this reflective piece at a snail’s pace, a choice that has divided audiences, some finding it meditative whilst others dismissing it as disengaging. While undeniably slow, the opening montages of flashbacks and carefully crafted mise-en-scène linked together through precise visual cuts shine in the first thirty minutes. Great care is taken to frame the characters even before we fully know them, and as a result, viewers must be patient and committed to make it past the forty-minute mark, when the philosophical exchanges truly begin.

If you are looking for explosions, elaborate crime scenes, and pulse-racing fight sequences, this is not the film for you. Instead, themes of control, fate, family, money, and trust are woven throughout, explored in dialogues between the mafia in hiding, the authorities in pursuit, and the carefully constructed letters exchanged between Matteo and Catello. Grassadonia and Piazza present Matteo as well-educated and deeply reflective, often quoting Biblical passages from Ecclesiastes to probe questions of morality: who decides what is good or evil, and who brings greater comfort in times of need—man or God?

One of the film’s most striking visual metaphors is Matteo’s recurring attempt to complete a large jigsaw puzzle. Scattered throughout the narrative, this image sheds light on his fractured memories and unresolved past, as he struggles to piece together where his journey will take him following his father’s death. Piece by piece, the audience learns more about his inner world until one final piece is missing. How will his story end?

Parallel to Matteo’s crisis, tensions rise between young agent Rita of the secret services and her superiors as they attempt to capture him. Rita embodies the black-and-white clarity of the law, yet the reality she confronts exists in confused shades of grey. Does justice require catching the boss of the operation to restore order or is the truth far less absolute? Ultimately, the film leaves this for viewers to contemplate. If you were after a slow paced front seat into the mind of a fragile mafia boss bestowed with responsibilities not of his own choosing, this is the film for you to digest. 

Reviewed by Sandra Lee