Film Review – The Mafia Only Kills in Summer

While it’s an accomplished and engaging dramedy, “The Mafia Only Kills in Summer” is perhaps most valued as a tonal tightrope walk writer/director Pierfrancesco Diliberto (making his helming debut) pulls off with remarkable balance. Here’s a film that takes on Italy’s blood-stained history with the mob, filled with assassinations and general chaos on the streets of Palermo. And yet, “The Mafia Only Kills in Summer” is work filled with slapstick comedy and reverence for real-world figures who stood up to deadly intimidation. It’s funny and shocking, often in the same moment, securely positioning a coming-of-age story on top of reality, developing all the awkwardness and awareness with enticing wit, timing, and horror. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com