The Viceroys (I Vicerè)

The Viceroys is an Italian costume drama based on a novel by Federico De Roberto. The novel set off a scandal at the end of the nineteenth century when it first appeared, and was subsequently banned for 100 years. The film recounts the history of Sicily through one its noble families, along the lines of Visconti’s great classic, The Leopard.

It is the mid 1800's, in the last years of the House of Bourbon reign in Sicily, and the eve of Italian reunification. The funeral of Princess Teresa brings together the members of the Uzeda family, descendents of the Viceroys of Spain. Through the eyes of a boy, Consalvo (Alessandro Preziosi), the last heir to the Uzeda dynasty, the mysteries, intrigues and complex personalities of the other family members are brought to light as they fight over the Princess’s inheritance. So Consalvo grows up in a family at war with itself. His father, a superstitious tyrant, consumed by his desire for power and money repeatedly ostracises his rebellious son and deprives his daughter even of the right to love.

The Viceroys emerges as a deeply satisfying and overtly political film, with many contemporary resonances. There is even a rumour that the Rome Film Festival declined to screen the film in 2007, concerned that it was too direct a critique on the Italian political concept of transformiso, a frequent swaying of convictions to maintain political unity. A charge denied.(Source: Italian Film Festival)

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