MALÉNA (A Film Review)

         Maléna is a story from a perspective of a child named Renato. Renato has this infatuation for a girl named Maléna who was a wife of a soldier that lived in the village where her husband grew up. But it happened that Renato was not the only one who has this all eyes on her. All the men in Sicily, even the married one, were fantasizing Maléna. When her husband left for war and was announced dead, she was forced to resort in prostitution to be able to feed herself. But it was a talk of the town that she has been already doing such even when her husband was still at war. Then the pack of angry married and single women came into “vengeance” when Italy won the war. She was brutally attacked and cut her hair. These unfortunate events led her to flee Sicily. But her husband, still breathing and very much, went home to Sicily only to find out his house occupied by strangers and his wife missing. The story ended when Maléna returned to Sicily with her husband and though it took some time, people befriended her.

            Maléna, Renato and the Sicilian community are victims of fate and random choices in a ripple effect.

            Maléna was a victim of gossip, of economic crisis and of war. She was a victim of gossip for it was not her control to stop people from making stories and talking about her. She was a victim of economical crisis for war results to famine and scarcity. She was merely expecting only from her husband’s income. Lastly, she was a victim of war for it was not her decision to engage Italy in war.

            Renato, young as he, was a victim of truth and innocence and war. He was a victim of truth and innocence that he has to accept at his very young age. He was able to see both truth, Maléna’s and Sicilian community, and though he has his biases, he was young enough to understand everything. He was emotionally and mentally unprepared to witness everything. Renato was also a victim of war. He was a victim of the country’s decision to engage in war.

            The Sicilian community was a victim of perspective and lies, society’s standard and war. These people did not know how and where the rumor started and to whom and how the anger started against Maléna. But they were just insecure and jealous that Maléna can take all eyes just by walking on Sicily’s street. Rumors were born and disseminated; they are just victim of this by listening and believing. And about what they did to Maléna was what the society taught them. It could be their belief or it could be what the society told them it has to be. Lastly, these people are also, like Maléna and Renato, victims of war and victims of random decisions to have war.

            There are always three sides of the truth, your side, my side and the truth itself. The only problem in every argument is no one would like to know and understand the differences to bridge the gaps. Also, no one can judge anyone in any way for no one actually knows how that someone is hurting. But one has to bear in mind, like what the famous line says, that we don’t see things as they are, we see these things as we are.