![]() ![]() (Since the publication of his novel Saviano has faced death threats and lives under armed guard.) But the recent surge in interest in Italian crime really came with journalist Roberto Saviano’s 2006 documentary fiction book, Gomorrah, on organized crime in Naples. There have since been some outstanding non-fiction books about the Mafia, such as Alexander Stille’s 1996 Excellent Cadavers, which described the battle waged on organized crime in the 1980s by the Sicilian prosecutors Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, both of whom were assassinated by the Mafia. Puzo’s Mafia seems far-removed-the story is set in the 1940s and 50s and it was really the success of the films that left an indelible mark on the public. Although subtle and mystical, it brings home the stark reality of the Mafia in a lasting way, something that Mario Puzo’s best-selling 1969 The Godfather did not manage to do, although it could be the unmeasurable difference in the quality of the writing. (It was made into a 1968 film with Claudia Cardinale). One of the best that exists in English translation is Leonardo Sciascia’s 1961 The Day of the Owl. ![]() So even if organized crime has been in existence since the 18th century, books about it only began to emerge in the mid 20th century. But more on this a little later…Ĭrime fiction got a relatively late start in Italy as Mussolini thought it reflected badly on the country. Suburra, the book, which was published in 2013 in Italy, is just out in English, translated by Anthony Shugaar. It will also become a Netflix series launching this October. One year later, the brutal crime thriller, Suburra, based on the book of the same name by Carlo Bonini and Romanzo Criminale author Giancarlo De Cataldo, was released. Audiences’ appetites were most definitely whetted. ![]() ![]() Then, in 2014, the masterful and terrifyingly dark TV series, Gomorrah aired in over 130 countries, running on the SundanceTV channel in the US. Three years later, the grim and chilling film, Gomorrah, based on Roberto Saviano’s book about the Neapolitan Camorra was released. First, in 2005 the powerful and award-winning film Romanzo Criminale, adapted from Giancarlo De Cataldo’s same-titled book put the spotlight on a real-life criminal organization located in Rome. Books, of course, have been the catalyst for nearly all of these recent adaptations. Italy has become stiff competition for Mexico these days in matters of film, and TV series about organized crime. ![]()
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