by MATTHEW HAYS

Though not quite as dialogue-free as Bernardo Bertolucci’s quiet gem Besieged, Respiro feels like a close cousin to that film. Director-screenwriter Emanuele Crialese often keeps the dialogue to a minimum - some scenes are evenly completely wordless - instead focussing on the details of passions and intricacies of small-town Sicilian life.

Shot on the island of Lampedusa, the film follows the emotional strains of one poor fishing family as they muddle through their rather grim lives. A young father and mother tend to their three kids while toiling away at making a meagre living. He’s a fisherman, as are most of the village men. She works in the fishing factory, but feels worn down, understandably, by the sheer repetition and banality of her routine.

The strains of family life are felt throughout, and Crialese, to his credit, manages to juxtapose these tribulations with shots of the turbulent ocean, the overwhelming body of water turning in a stellar performance itself. (Cinematographer Fabio Zamarion deserves a good deal of praise for his wondrous camerawork.)

What unfolds with Respiro is an astonishing thing: a film without pretension, that captures the complexity of an occasionally-tortured relationship between husband and wife, while also illuminating the ties between mother and son.

Also in the tortured-family vein comes Raising Victor Vargas, Peter Sollett’s minimalist comedy-drama in which our titular hero defies his strict grandmother by stepping out into his first romance. As with Respiro, the film offers a strikingly realistic slice-of-life - again with the hot summer - this time set in New York City.

Living in a lower east side Latino ’hood, young Victor is trying to date a girl he’s long been crushy on, but grandma is very, very unhappy about the prospect of her brood growing up. Sollett has managed to convey both the sweet innocence of childhood and the need to break away from parental scrutiny. Like Respiro, Raising Victor Vargas is a perfect little summer getaway.

Raising Victor Vargas is now playing
at Ex-Centris. Respiro opens Friday, June 27

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