Overview
A gripping tale of faith and identity unfolds as a young boy's life is irrevocably changed.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- harrowing
- solemn
- politically charged
- serious film night
- historical cinema viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as a powerful, visually imposing historical drama that confronts institutional abuse and religious authority through a compelling true story.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Edgardo is removed from his Jewish family after an alleged infant baptism and subjected to Catholic indoctrination.
The Mortara family’s appeals are overwhelmed by the authority of the papal church and its officials.
The film stages nineteenth-century Bologna and Rome with formal church spaces, period production design, and political ceremony.
The abduction and reeducation of Edgardo dramatize the coercive authority of the Papal States before Italian unification.
Films like Kidnapped, and why
The Official Story
historical drama confronting institutional power, religious authority, and the oppression of a child
A Hidden Life
morally charged historical drama about faith, family, and state-backed persecution
The Best of Youth
Italian historical drama examining Catholic power and political conflict through a child-centered story
Movie Details
- Director
- Marco Bellocchio
- Release Date
- 2023-05-25
- Runtime
- 134 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (392)
Cast
- Enea Sala
- Leonardo Maltese
- Paolo Pierobon
- Fausto Russo Alesi
- Barbara Ronchi
- Andrea Gherpelli
- Samuele Teneggi
- Corrado Invernizzi
- Filippo Timi
- Fabrizio Gifuni
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Philo, Fandor Amazon Channel, Cohen Media Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Plex
- 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 Kidnapped about?
- A Jewish child’s forced removal from his family becomes a devastating confrontation between parental love and the authority of the nineteenth-century Catholic Church.
- What is Kidnapped like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Kidnapped as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Kidnapped violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Kidnapped as mild.
- What did critics think of Kidnapped?
- Critics broadly regard the film as a powerful, visually imposing historical drama that confronts institutional abuse and religious authority through a compelling true story.
- Which films are like Kidnapped?
- Films with a similar feel include The Official Story, A Hidden Life, and The Best of Youth.
- How long is Kidnapped?
- Kidnapped runs 134 minutes.
- Where can I watch Kidnapped?
- In United States, Kidnapped streams on Philo, Fandor Amazon Channel, Cohen Media Amazon Channel.
