Adagio (2023)
Story overview
In this 2023 Italian-French crime thriller directed by Stefano Sollima, a young man becomes entangled in a dangerous situation involving blackmail and corrupt police. To protect himself, he turns to his father's former criminal associates—aging gangsters who must confront their pasts and risk everything to rescue him from the escalating threat.
Parent Guide
A mature crime thriller with intense violence, peril, and complex themes about organized crime, corruption, and loyalty. Not suitable for younger viewers due to graphic content and mature subject matter.
Content breakdown
Contains scenes of criminal violence including physical assaults, threats with weapons, implied torture, and perilous situations. Characters are in constant danger from both criminals and corrupt authorities. Some violence is graphic though not excessively gory.
Tense thriller elements create sustained suspense and anxiety. Themes of blackmail, corruption, and organized crime may be disturbing. Characters face moral dilemmas and betrayal that could unsettle sensitive viewers.
Contains strong language in Italian (with English subtitles) including profanity and crude expressions. Some threats and aggressive dialogue. The intensity matches the crime genre conventions.
Minimal sexual content. May include suggestive dialogue or brief references to sexual situations typical of the crime genre, but no explicit scenes or nudity.
Characters smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol in social/criminal settings. May include scenes in bars or with alcohol consumption as part of the criminal underworld atmosphere. No glorification of substance abuse.
High emotional stakes throughout with themes of betrayal, loyalty, family legacy, and survival. Characters experience fear, desperation, and moral conflict. The father-son dynamic adds emotional weight to the criminal plot.
Parent tips
This film contains intense crime/thriller elements including violence, peril, and mature themes. Consider the following: 1) Watch first to assess appropriateness for your child; 2) Be prepared to discuss organized crime, corruption, and moral choices; 3) Note the film's 127-minute runtime may challenge younger viewers' attention spans; 4) The Italian language (with subtitles) and complex plot require mature comprehension skills.
Parent chat guide
Parent follow-up questions
- This movie is too grown-up for little kids. What cartoon would you like to watch instead?
- This movie has scary parts with bad guys. What makes someone a good friend when things get tough?
- The characters in this movie face difficult choices. What would you do if a friend needed help but helping meant breaking rules?
- This film explores moral ambiguity in crime situations. Where do you draw the line between loyalty and legality? How does corruption in institutions affect society?
🎭 Story Kernel
Adagio serves as the concluding chapter of Stefano Sollima’s unofficial Roman crime trilogy, exploring the concept of generational decay and the heavy burden of legacy. The film follows Manuel, a teenager caught in a web of corruption, who seeks protection from his father’s old criminal associates. However, these legends of the Roman underworld are now mere shadows of their former selves—blind, sick, or mentally broken. The narrative expresses the inevitability of change and the desperate, final attempts at redemption by men who have spent their lives in darkness. It is less about the thrill of the heist and more about the weight of past sins, as the old guard sacrifices itself to ensure a future for the next generation amidst a crumbling social and physical infrastructure.
🎬 Visual Aesthetics
The visual language of Adagio is dominated by a sense of stifling heat and impending doom. Cinematographer Paolo Carnera captures a Rome that is physically burning, with wildfires encroaching on the city and constant power outages plunging the streets into a murky, orange-hued darkness. This environmental chaos mirrors the moral collapse of the characters. The use of long, deliberate takes—true to the musical definition of the title—emphasizes the physical and spiritual exhaustion of the protagonists. Symbolism is found in the recurring imagery of smoke and ash, suggesting that the era of the old-school gangster is being incinerated. The contrast between the sterile, high-tech surveillance used by the corrupt police and the decaying, analog world of the old criminals highlights the shift in power dynamics.
🔍 Details & Easter Eggs
💡 Behind the Scenes
Adagio marks a significant homecoming for Stefano Sollima after his high-profile ventures in Hollywood with Sicario: Day of the Soldado and Without Remorse. The film features a powerhouse cast of Italian cinema, reuniting frequent collaborators like Pierfrancesco Favino, Toni Servillo, and Valerio Mastandrea. The score was composed by the Italian rock band Subsonica, who previously worked with Sollima on the Suburra soundtrack, providing a pulsating, electronic heartbeat that contrasts with the film's slow-burn pacing. The production utilized the actual sweltering Roman summer to enhance the film's claustrophobic and gritty atmosphere.
Where to watch
Choose region:
- Netflix
- Netflix Standard with Ads
Trailer
Trailer playback is unavailable in your region.
