The demonization of the South and the Southernification of evil in contemporary Italian cinema: Belluscone and Qualunquemente

Abstract

Abstract Traditional images of the South of Italy are constructed on the premise of the negation of the positive values that allegedly define the Italian nation, and Southern populations are normally portrayed as lazy, backwards, inclined to crime and illegal behaviours, etc. In this article, I evaluate the ways in which contemporary Italian cinema resorts to these representations by analysing two recent Italian movies, namely, Qualunquemente (Whatsoeverly) (Manfredonia, 2011), starring, and written by, Antonio Albanese, and Franco Maresco’s Belluscone: Una storia siciliana (Belluscone: A Sicilian Story) (Maresco, 2014). In particular, I claim that these two films, often disguised as instances of political impegno (‘engagement’) and satire, concur to symbolically absolve the Italian nation of its political and ethical responsibilities, only to hand over the perceived guilt to Southern communities, territories and identities. Alongside the traditional demonization of the South, Italian cinema performs and nurtures a characteristic ‘Southernification of evil’.