V E N T N O R   F I L M  S O C I E T Y​​

In Senegal, teenager Seydou is the man of the house, supporting his mother and sisters. With his cousin Moussa, he plans to travel to Italy, inspired by the music stars he watches on TikTok, innocently believing that they will have more opportunities in Europe. For years they have been writing songs and secretly working on building sites to build up cash savings.

 

The two set out for hopefully for Italy, but their excitement turns to terror as the harsh reality of the trade in migrants becomes apparent. Between their dreams and reality lie perilous checkpoints, horrific prisons, the Sahara Desert, and the treacherous waters of the Mediterranean.

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The boys hand over their savings to join a group crossing the Sahara to Libya in an unsafe van, followed by a gruelling journey on foot across the scorching sand. The boys are separated in Libya, one taken into official custody, the other to a prison run by Libyan warlords, where the migrants are told to get their parents to wire their life savings if they wish their children to survive.

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Finally, the boys secure a crossing on a crowded boat heading to Italy - but only on condition that Seydou serves as the boat's 'capitano'. After minimal training, he is placed in charge of the terrified migrants as they set out to sea.​

 

Scenes of brutal reality and magic realism combine with glimmers of hope in a passionate exposé of the inhuman greed and corruption driving today’s slave trade in migrants. When the boys are driven to despair, Director Garrone turns their trauma into a surreal fantasy using Wolof myths and the desert as a beautiful background.

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The casting of the two talented, non-professional young lead actors is inspired, with sensitive performances depicting their warm, fraternal relationship. Sarr gives a captivating, sensitive performance as Seydou, who displays an almost naive purity and innocence, maintaining his empathy for his fellow migrants in face of exposure to the darkest side of humanity.

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“Io Capitano” delves into dark themes, but the final message is one of hope. Seydou has grown from a naïve boy to a responsible young man, with a new-found maturity and confidence. His dreams have repeatedly turned into nightmares along the way, but the film ends on a hopeful note and leaves the audience with the positive feeling that this boy will, and deserves to be, okay.​

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To book, please email ventnorfilmsociety@hotmail.com.

 

The Critics Say...

​"Sarr and Fall are wonderful young actors and excel in displaying joy and fear, presenting a warming and believable brotherly dynamic." Kathleen McLaughlin, Little White Lies

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"Io Capitano is a cinematic journey of hope and heroism". Charles Leonard, Mail&Guardian

 

“The films of Italy’s Matteo Garrone always bloom at the meeting point of two different realisms: social and magic. They’re alive to the hardships of ordinary life, but also its comedy and strangeness...” Robbie Collin, Daily Telegraph ****

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“Italian director Matteo Garrone mixes magic realism and brutal reality, but what's most impressive is the profoundly moving work of actors Seydou Sarr and Moustapha Fall..” Olive Jones, The Observer

 

“Garrone’s film has a three-dimensional and devastatingly realized human soul at its core. The world could do with paying attention to Seydou’s story and the millions of other real ones like it.” Leila Latif, Indiewire