Overview
A humorous yet poignant exploration of love and crime in the heart of Sicily.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- satirical
- warm
- lazy sunday
- 역사 film night
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film an engaging and accessible blend of comedy, romance, and anti-mafia historical reflection, though its approach is more conventional than formally daring.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Arturo grows from a boy into adulthood while repeatedly trying to win Flora’s affection against the backdrop of Palermo’s changing civic life.
The film mocks Sicilian Mafia bosses and contrasts their public mythology with the generosity of anti-mafia heroes.
Arturo’s life is interwoven with roughly twenty years of Sicilian history from the 1970s through the 1990s.
The story is rooted in Arturo’s upbringing in Palermo and treats Sicily as both home and historical subject.
Films like The Mafia Kills Only in Summer, and why
Goodbye Lenin!
shared black comedy, coming-of-age perspective, and bittersweet engagement with organized crime and national history
Cinema Paradiso
shared blend of romantic longing, personal maturation, and politically charged historical memory
The Death of Stalin
shared darkly comic treatment of criminal power, civic corruption, and ordinary people confronting history
The Best of Youth
shared coming-of-age structure, regional identity, and affectionate yet critical portrait of a society shaped by violence
Movie Details
- Director
- Pif
- Release Date
- 2013-11-28
- Runtime
- 90 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (1152)
Cast
- Pif
- Cristiana Capotondi
- Rosario Lisma
- Barbara Tabita
- Alex Bisconti
- Ginevra Antona
- Antonino Bruschetta
- Claudio Gioè
- Turi Giuffrida
- Roberto Burgio
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Philo, OVID, Fandor Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Mafia Kills Only in Summer about?
- A Palermo boy’s lifelong pursuit of love unfolds as a witty, affectionate, and historically grounded reckoning with Sicily’s Mafia era.
- What is The Mafia Kills Only in Summer like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Mafia Kills Only in Summer as brisk, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Mafia Kills Only in Summer violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Mafia Kills Only in Summer as mild.
- What did critics think of The Mafia Kills Only in Summer?
- Critics broadly found the film an engaging and accessible blend of comedy, romance, and anti-mafia historical reflection, though its approach is more conventional than formally daring.
- Which films are like The Mafia Kills Only in Summer?
- Films with a similar feel include Goodbye Lenin!, Cinema Paradiso, The Death of Stalin, and The Best of Youth.
- How long is The Mafia Kills Only in Summer?
- The Mafia Kills Only in Summer runs 90 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Mafia Kills Only in Summer?
- In United States, The Mafia Kills Only in Summer streams on Philo, OVID, Fandor Amazon Channel.
