We have been waiting for Tornatore for years. But it was worthy, if this is the result! After Malena, he is returning to the highest levels of his carrier. Few movies, but most of them are unforgettable pearls! In this one, nothing is out of place and all the actors are playing at their best, with various original stories all perfectly interlacing: everything put together, this is one of the best movies ever directed by Tornatore!! Michele Placido is heavily representing the evil in this story, playing one of his most ambiguous, scaring and demonic characters of his long carrier. But everyone is completely believable in their roles and the suspense of the plot keeps you constantly concentrated until the end.

We have been waiting for Tornatore since Malena, in 2000, and now he has come back with this drama/ thriller, with a rather melodramatic plot inspired by the often very tragic news stories about the exploitation of women from East Europe in Italy. The main character, the Ukranian Irena, played by the wonderful and hardly known Russian stage actress Xenia Rappoport, has something very mysterious about her. She pursues an obscure aim, concerning the young Italian couple whom she works for and their 5 years old daughter. At the beginning the film has something very hitchcockian about it, then it turns to melodrama, with many emotional moments (don't forget your hankies!) There are few very hard scenes, with much violence, mental and physical. Tornatore does the usual good work. In this film he could count on a capital cast, including, besides Rappoport, the cream of the crop of Italian acting: an hairless and extremely sleazy Michele Placido, the very good Claudia Gerini and Pierfrancesco Favino, Alessandro Haber, Piera degli Esposti and Margherita Buy, who agreed to appear just a few minutes by the end of the film. Clara Dossena, the child actress who play one of the key characters of the film, is not only incredibly cute, but also much talented. A very remarkable thing is the score by maestro Ennio Morricone. Some critics said it's too invasive, but God, it's beautiful. I think you will love the sweet and heartbreaking "Lullaby theme". On the whole, a convincing film. Probably the best of the first Roma Film Festival. My rating is 8/10

Irena, who arrives in Trieste, with what appears to be a lot of cash, looking for an apartment where to live; she chooses a dilapidated place that offers an advantage: from its windows, she can spy on the building across the square. In order to gain access, Irina bribes the janitor into getting work as a maid. She seeks Gina, a woman who works for a couple that make jewelry in their spacious apartment. It is clear Irena has something else in mind, and couldn't care less for Gina.

When Gina suffers an accident, Irena applies for the position, and surprise, surprise, she gets it. The rapport with the little girl Tea becomes apparent. Valeria Adacher, the lady of the house warns her about Tea, who has what appears to be a neurological condition that makes her fall and cannot get up by herself. She also tells her not to enter her workshop ever. Irina spots the safe where the jewelry is kept. Naturally, one assumes then, her interest in gaining access to the house is to steal, but no, she has something else in mind, as we watch her going over some papers that are kept locked up. Valeria and her husband, Donato, seem not to be a happy couple. They are heard loudly arguing in the background by the maid, so all is not right in their home.

Irina and Tea form a tight bond, something that Valeria notices right away. The maid wants to teach the girl how to overcome her handicap, and to this end, she ties Tea and pushes her to the mattresses on the floor and coaxes her into getting up using her technique. In our minds we begin wondering if there is more in Irena's attitude toward Tea because it is a rare thing for a house maid to become so involved in making better someone that is not even related to her.

In flashbacks we get to know a little bit of Irena's past. She has been turned into a prostitute by Italian criminals who import these poor girls from Russia. She meets a young man who seems to love her. Since she is what she is, this lover, is made to disappear by Mold, the vicious man that controls her. Irena discovers where he has stashed his cash and tries to kill Mold with scissors, but unknown to her, he survives. Mold has a way of turning up when he is least expected.

Things turn out wrong for Irena when Valeria discovers her dark secret. She fires her and forbids her to go near Tea. Unfortunately, Valeria dies in an automobile accident for which Irena is accused of masterminding. At the same time, things about the mystery surrounding the Russian woman are revealed. In her trial, she is convicted and sent to prison. As the film concludes, we see an older Irena who is released after serving time and as she waits for a bus, who would show up to meet her?

Giuseppe Tornatore, the talented Italian director of the hugely popular "Cinema Paradiso" and "Malena", just to mention two of his previous films, makes us get involved with this complex story. Working with his collaborator, Massimo DeRita, he has created a multi layered melodrama that involves the viewer. The only problem is that many things are not completely explained. Thus, there is a hint that Donato Adacher has a lot to do in the story, although his participation is a subtle one. The other mystery is Gina, who for all appearances dies in the accident, but later is seen at the nursing home in a catatonic state, but is she really? The idea that Mold can survive the stabbing is hard to digest, after all, it's a big stretch of the imagination to think he can still be around after what Irena does to him. Mr. Tornatore is obviously playing with the viewer in making him believe to look at things a certain way, while he is deceiving our perception of the plot. If all that is superfluous, then the viewer is going to have a great time.

Best of all in the film is Ksenia Rappoport, who plays Irena convincingly. She runs away with the film. Ms. Rappoport pulls us into the story without doing much. Claudia Gerini's Valeria is also an asset in the film. Alessandro Haber who plays the janitor has some excellent moments. Michele Placido is seen as the obnoxious criminal Mold. Margherita Buy, one of the best Italian actresses working these days puts in an appearance at the last part of the film. Finally, Clara Dossena makes a valuable contribution as Tea, the sweet child in the story.

The musical score by the master of all movie composers, Ennio Morricone, will stay in our minds for a while. Fabion Zamarion's impeccable cinematography makes a great impression. We await Mr. Tornatore's next film impatiently.