Family Friend, The (L’amico di famiglia)

In a small town, an ageing loan shark, who lives with his mother, is undone by greed and his fatal attraction to a beautiful young woman. A highly original, gripping and occasionally grotesque suspense drama, The Family Friend intensely explores extreme emotions, whilst playing out a clever crime confidence-trick plot. Visually rich, The Family Friend's tragi-comic tone and almost surreal atmosphere recalls Fellini but its distinctive direction and contemporary style confirms filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino (whose notable feature film, Consequences of Love, was shown to great acclaim in the 2004 Festival) as a major talent in his own right. The Family Friend manages to use its small town setting and gallery of idiosyncratic characters to considerable effect. Indeed, the fact that the film manages to make us engage with and be fascinated by a central character who, on one level is irredeemably unpleasant, is a tribute to the filmmaking skill on display. The Family Friend is further embellished by its luminous cinematography by Luca Bigazzi and an excellent soundtrack by Teho Teardo.