Locarno review: In The Penal Colony (2025)
Semaine de la Critique
Is there a better way to analyse the concept of freedom than going to a place where freedom is the most precious currency given in the hands of just a few? The penal colonies (aka, open-air workhouses) are a unique form of detention that has been employed since the late 19th century. As it happens, three of the last remaining ones in Europe are active in Sardinia: Isli, Mamone, and Arenas.
Italian directors Gaetano Crivaro, Silvia Perra, Ferruccio Goia, and Alberto Diana have travelled to Sardinia to document the human, animal, and still life in four different locations (one former penal colony is also captured on film) that bring those worlds close to each other, and seldom voluntarily. In The Penal Colony is a study of a hamster wheel in the few remaining bastions of the so-called open-air workspaces in Europe. The captives keep the animals captive; they make sure there is no escape, and they also deliver them to slaughter. The others, blending with the low-wage workers, are processing their meat, hidden behind masks and massive vapour clouds. Once their work is done, they are back into their own cages, nervously pacing back and forth between the metal bars of the courtyard.
Crivaro is behind the film’s opening episode, which gazes into the lives of Isili inmates, closely tied to the local meat and dairy industry. There is no accompanying acoustic commentary to the stories that unfold before our eyes. The spoken word is exchanged between people on screen, who go about their own business, or rather, their daily routines: as shepherds, canteen workers, herders, cheese makers, or even prison administrators who oversee the proper distribution of clothing and other essential items. A lack of structured vocal guidance is the film’s strong suit, as it harnesses the power of the existing cacophony of sound that comes from people, machines, animals, and nature alike. The sheepbells meet the merciless windblows and the engine revving coming from afar, the security guards’ badge scanning machines beep, and the cooling system inside the building hums, sometimes joined by the buzzing of an insect or the chirping of a bird in low flight. It’s a sinister, lifeless place painted in sorrowful grey hues by its architects, and kept that way by the system. Occasionally, a ball gets kicked in the prison yard, which is a rare occasion when everyone wears something other than drab, prison or work clothes.
Silvia Perra takes us to Mamone in the wintertime, where the second episode is set. Outside of the big gated prison, only a massive flock of sheep can be seen. Similarly to Isili, everyone is busy performing their duties. Men working in the prison kitchen feed cats through the window bars, and some gather to sing a cappella. Several inmates are taken to the village to clean public spaces, build stone fences, or perform minor repairs. However, this particular chapter of the movie is about farewell and the strong bonds built between men during their time served. When one of the particularly loved prisoners, a young man called Mustafa, gets released, it is a sad moment for everyone, even for him. His walk into freedom is a step into loneliness. Outside of Mamone’s walls, there is no one waiting for him.
Life in Is Arenas is depicted by Ferruccio Goia, with a portrait of a young Turkish man who tends to the cows in the mornings and evenings. He is appalled by the way local farmers he is working for treat animals, as we find out through a video conversation he has with his family back home. Later, he is seen bringing the animals out to graze and drink water from a tiny creek. He seems at peace with his life in the penal colony. At the same time, his friends, who are primarily engaged in farming and maintaining greenhouses, are consumed with discontent. This part of the movie has the strongest focus on one particular character and is less concerned with what is happening within the confines of Is Arenas. It is a warm and tender story about a man who found solace in his imprisonment by discovering a true passion for reading and animals.
Sardinia has converted the majority of its former prisons and penal colonies into museum and exhibition spaces, and one of them (the former Tumbarino prison branch, which closed in 1998) in Asinara Park serves as the Wildlife Observatory. Several buildings in the hamlet have been renovated and are now used to house a visitor centre and the observatory. The former living quarters of the inmates have been converted into exhibition and multimedia areas, including a green classroom for educational activities, the wildlife and ornithological centre, and the laboratory for ringing activities. The fourth chapter of the film, directed by Alberto Diana, takes us there, inside the humble examination room, where a couple of observers examine the local birds that were previously caught in the wilderness, chip them, and then set them free again. A subtle parallel is drawn between the animals and the men of the penal colonies, as the animals only partially enjoy their freedom to roam the island, and men are let out of their confined space only for the purpose of labour. Humans and animals from these godforsaken parts of the popular tourist destination live in constant fear of entrapment, hidden in the rough regions of Sardinia, only miles away from paradisiacal sandy beaches.
In The Penal Colony is an impressive study of isolation done with intelligent use of metaphors, carefully chosen subjects, and a keen eye for detail. The film had its world premiere in the Semaine de la Critique program of Locarno Film Festival, and concerning the approachability and quality of its audio-visual language, its chances of reaching a larger audience are pretty strong, at least in the international festival circuit.
Original Title: Nella colonia penale
Country of Production: Italy
Languages: Italian, Arabic, Turkish
Year: 2025
Runtime: 85′
Written|Directed by: Gaetano Crivaro, Silvia Perra, Ferruccio Goia, Alberto Diana
Production: Mommotty
Producers: Laura Biagini, Nicola Contini, Matteo Incollu, Federica Ortu
Cinematography: Federica Ortu
Editors: Emanuele Malloci, Gaetano Crivaro, Felice d’Agostino
Sound: Andrea Oppo, Emanuele Pusceddu, Roberto Cois
Sound Design|Sound Editing|Sound Mixing: Emanuele Pusceddu
