One of the major plot points in this movie is the relationship between Peppino and his father. I found their relationship throughout the movie extremely captivating for several main reasons. Their relationship is marred by the fundamental differences in beliefs, their lack of conversation, and the difference in their goals. Obviously, the two men have very different beliefs about how things should be run and who should run them. Some of this can be attributed to the differences in their experiences with the mafia. Peppino saw his grandfather die at the hands of the mafia just so his uncle could take control. Peppino’s father, on the other hand, grew up with the mafia and had experienced it in full effect throughout his life. This leaves the father and son with extremely contrasting viewpoints of the mafia. While Peppino’s dad moved on from the death an continued to support the mafia, what happened at the start of the movie led Peppino to find a source of rebellion against the mafia, which ended up being the Communist party. The directly contrasting beliefs between the mafia and the Communist party led to a rift growing between Peppino and his father. This rift was exacerbated by their inability to communicate. It was frustrating to watch the scene where Peppino and his father eat alone at the restaurant because the two men refused to hold any meaningful conversation, although they both wanted to. This time was an opportunity for both men to clear their heads on the issue and somewhat reconcile as family members. Instead, both men went their own ways despite not wanting to. Peppino’s father talks to himself as he walks home, creating a discourse between himself and Peppino inside his head and speaking it out loud to himself. In this discourse they do have meaningful discourse, and even reconcile enough to have Peppino drive his father home. This obviously would have been the preferred option for the two, but they are stubborn and instead miss out on this opportunity. A third reason their relationship was so captivating was their difference in their goals. While Peppino wanted to take down the mafia system and revolutionize the government in Cinisi, Peppino’s father only wanted to keep his family safe. This is why throughout the movie we see them at odds so often. Peppino’s father is concerned that Peppino’s irrational actions will bring harm down on not only Peppino, but also the rest of the family. We can see at the end of the movie, Peppino’s father was right about Peppino getting them in danger, with both of their deaths coming at the hands of the mafia.
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