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He missed the point of this movie even more than he missed the point of Memento, and his review of that movie was like a blind man describing a shooting star. Roger Ebert wrote probably the most idiotic review I've ever seen him come out with about this movie. But in looking back at the movie it seems that what caused the problems were two things gossip and something like insecurity. The men are guilty of dirty, lustful thoughts (and some of more than just thoughts), the women are guilty of gossip, violence and probably more than a little envy, and Malena is guilty of being a homewrecker. Malena is a film that gives the impression that there are no innocent parties. (My dream sequence, I guess) My favorite character was Renato's father, hilariously played by Luciano Federico. The title role, played well by a dazzling Monica Bellucci, could have been written for a young Sophia Loren. The male lead, an adolescent boy, is portrayed with great empathy by Giuseppe Sulfaro without schmaltz or sanitizing, so typical in American films about puberty. Tornatore brilliantly uses silent stares, pairs of eyes and silly dream sequences with amazing effect. There is a sequence with airplanes overhead that is absolutely dizzying without any fancy 3-D or pyrotechnic effects. The film made me wake up to the fact that so much American film, perhaps all contemporary film, is composed mainly of close ups with two or a few people. Just like walking down a busy urban street anywhere with your ears and eyes open. The film brought me into the bustling street life of the Sicilian village by eye-level camera work and the comments of the people in crowded scenes, through which I was taken with the characters. I was also impressed with the film maker's story telling technique. I found the film to be visually hypnotic and very moving.