Malavita

Buy the Book

     September is a slow time at the movies. It’s stuck in the in-between surrounded by big action summer movies at its fore and heady, award contenders in the aft. Films that studios don’t really know what to do with come out around this time and they’re usually lacking. The Family, based on Tonino Benacquista’s Malavita, is a perfect example of September ho-hum movies. All the selling points are there (Robert DeNiro in a gangster movie sounds like box office gold, right?) but the final product leaves much to be desired. It’s too bad, because the book is superior in every way.

     We frequently find ourselves nose-deep in what we call a “page-turner”: a book with a plot and writing style that catapults us through the pages to the finale. Malavita is no such book. It’s not a bad read by any means, but it’s not thrilling or engaging enough to really make the reader need to know what happens next.

     The story is simple enough. Giovanni Manzoni was a New Jersey mob boss with a wife and two children; the elder Belle and younger Warren. Giovanni was arrested and tried and ended up turning in all his mob buddies and put into witness protection. Because he was so high up, he now has a 20 million dollar bounty on his head. Such a high profile target can’t live just anywhere, so Giovanni and his tough-as-nails family are sent to live in Normandy, France. The novel opens with the foursome moving into their Normandy home in the middle of the night. It’s your standard fish-out-of-water story. Just imagine any classic mobster from the movies trying to get along in a country he does not know, with a culture he does not care to learn about (the snobby French, no less!), all without resorting to his wise guy antics. Each chapter follows one of the four members of the family getting along in the new territory in their own unique ways. Of course the most predictable ending unfolds: some how the mob figures out Giovanni is in Normandy and a ten-hitman-team is sent to eradicate the snitch and his family.

     The book is a fun, leisurely read. The plot is predictable and familiar, with characters that don’t jump out at you, but are entertaining enough to keep you reading. The most inspired parts of the book concern Giovanni finding an old typewriter in the new house and attempting to write his memoirs. Which is ludicrous because he’s a wise-guy who uses the f-bomb to describe almost any experience, and his identity is top secret. He is reminded over and over that it’s a waste of time to write about his past because he isn’t even allowed to speak of it. He is no longer Giovanni; he is now Fred Blake.

See the Movie

     You would think Luc Besson, director of such quirky and excellent films as The Fifth Element and The Professional, would be able to breathe fresh cinematic life into a story like Malavita. This is unfortunately not the case. A decently good book becomes a tiresome, often uncomfortable, movie in The Family. All the elements of a good mafia farce seem to be in order (Robert DeNiro as the mob boss, Michelle Pfeiffer as his bitter wife, and Tommy Lee Jones as a tired old FBI agent) but the pieces do not equal a satisfying whole. The film has its laugh-out-loud moments but they are penetrated by tastelessly violent scenes, very few of which appear in the book. The book is funny and thoughtful, but the movie feels slopped together last-minute.

     Oddly the book’s plot stays intact, but it doesn’t hold up on screen. It seems to be the kind of story that isn’t mean to be taken in all at once. You notice the gaps in continuity regarding theme and pacing. It’s just an uneven story. One minute you sympathize with Giovanni, and the next you realize you would never want him as a friend because he committed the ultimate sin: betrayal. You don’t notice these issues when reading the book a few chapters at a time but they show themselves when seeing the whole thing play out on screen. The film is entertaining enough to fill a lazy afternoon on the couch, but don’t spend you money on this one at the theater. Read the book if you’re looking for something light and clever in its execution.