Italian Journey: Kidnapped

Director: Marco Bellocchio

Cast: Paolo Pierobon, Fausto Russo Alesi, Enea Sala, Barbara Ronchi, Filippo Timi, Fabrizio Gifuni, Andrea Gherpelli, Samuele Teneggi, Corrado Invernizzi, Paolo Calabresi, Leonardo Maltese, Federica Fracassi, Bruno Cariello, Giustiniano Alpi

Pre-premier screening

In 1858, in the Jewish quarter of Bologna, the Pope’s soldiers burst into the home of the Mortara family. By order of the cardinal, they have come to take Edgardo, their seven-year-old son. The child had been secretly baptized by his nurse as a baby and the papal law is unquestionable: he must receive a Catholic education. Edgardo’s parents, distraught, will do anything to get their son back. Supported by public opinion and the international Jewish community, the Mortaras’ struggle quickly take a political dimension. But the Church and the Pope will not agree to return the child, to consolidate an increasingly wavering power…

More information about the Italian Journey 2023/24 >>

The program is supported by the National Cultural Fund of Hungary.

Awards: BFI London Film Festival 2023: Debate
Busan International Film Festival 2023: Icons
Festival de Cannes 2023: In Concorso
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival 2023: Horizons
TIFF - Toronto International Film Festival 2023: Special Presentations
Tokyo International Film Festival 2023: Gala Selection
Viennale 2023: Features