Renato is a 13-year-old boy growing up in a small Sicilian community. Mussolini has risen to power and has declared war upon England and France, but Renato has other things on his mind, mostly girls. While hanging out with his friends by the seashore, Renato spies Malèna, the daughter of one of his schoolteachers, whose husband Nino is fighting with Mussolini's army. Renato is immediately obsessed with Malèna and follows her like a lost puppy, spying on her whenever circumstances permit and imagining her as his co-star in elaborate erotic fantasies inspired by his favorite movies. Renato, however, is hardly the only man in town to be struck by Malèna's charms, and her beauty leads to resentment from the women of the community. Malèna's circumstances take a turn for the worst after her husband is reported to have died in combat, and she is left to the forces of envy and gossip. The narrow minded jealousy of the town's women force her into the very circumstance that they all believe she came from. She is brutally treated and exiled. Renato has some less than encouraging news to report when Nino turns out to be alive and finds his spouse is missing.
Malèna was written and directed by Giuseppe Tornatore, best known for Cinema Paradiso. This film marks him as not only a very accomplished director and writer but also as an engaging and compassionate story teller. It is one of those films that once seen, is never forgotten.
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