One of the most influential criminal groups - Cosa Nostra - can be discussed for a very, very long time, the history of its origin is very entertaining.
The story of the "family"
The story began a couple of centuries ago with the usual forced "protection" of plantations, as well as various sites. The gangs often recruited ordinary peasants who wished to get rich by not quite legal methods. Gradually, year after year, Cosa Nostra (the translation of the term from Sicilian sounds like “Our business”) expanded the sphere of influence, moving from a timid racket to open gangsterism. Accordingly, with an increase in income and the number of members of the mafia, the group continued to expand territorially, extending the reins of government to Calabria, Apulia and Naples.
Trying to eradicate and oust the mafia group from their territories, the Sicilian government forced the Italians to emigrate to the United States, where subsequently Coza Nostra not only comfortably settled in, but almost single-handedly headed the entire criminal business in the United States, in particular, in the territories of Chicago and New -York.
"Family" and cinema
It is not surprising that this organization became an object of close public attention and inspired people of creativity to create works of art, literature and cinema. Among the most popular films that shed light on what Cosa Nostra is, the following films stand out:
- "Wallanzasca - angels of evil." Milan. 70th years. The city is terrorized by the famous mafia group Comasina. The leader of the gang is Renato Vallantsaska, nicknamed "Handsome Renault." On his way, he not only broke the hearts of many women, but also committed many murders. For them he was sent to prison for 260 years.
- "Amazing". The film tells the story of the legendary Italian Prime Minister named Giulio Andreotti, who worked in this post for 6 or 7 terms. He had a good sense of humor, and he also had some connections with the local mafia. Giulio Andreotti was a little funny man, who was in the center of death, intrigue.
- "Capone." After the film “The Godfather”, shot by Coppola, in the 70s, they began to massively shoot various films about gangster sagas. Like other directors, Roger Corman, who shot only low-budget films, decided to keep up and also made a film about gangsters. The film was based on a biography of the famous head of the mafia world - Al Capone. It tells some episodes from the biography of a gangster. First, a senior comrade offers help to a young uncertain man, from whom Al Capone soon decides to get rid of and remove him from his path. But in life everything happens like a boomerang, and now they are trying to remove it already.
- Gommora. The film tells about life in Naples, whose poor neighborhoods belong to the Camorra mafia. A criminal group is connected with each character by a certain story: one took part in the murder, the second - someone betrayed and in return received a reward in money, the third - hid toxic waste, and therefore they can not get out of the mafia world. The film is based on a book written by journalist Roberto Saviano. After the work was released, the author took the police under her protection.
Mafia America is not alien
Cosa Nostra has mastered in the USA. This was reflected in the works of cinema.
- The film "Donnie Brasco." The action takes place in New York in 1978. The new task is entrusted to the FBI agent John Piston, he will enter the criminal gang in Brooklyn and get information about the actions of the gangster gang. He needs to take a new name, forget his friends and family, because he is Donnie Brasco. As partners, the hero is given the old mafioso, who entrusts the guy with the performance of responsible tasks. A new world of impunity is dragging on Donnie, but he realizes that he needs to return.
- "Forget Palermo." One of the candidates for the post of measure of the city of New York is Carmine Bonavia, whose election campaign contains a clause that drugs in the city must be legalized. This state of affairs does not suit mafia groups that specialize in selling drugs and are afraid of losing their money, because it is legalization that can lead to this. At a time when Carmine is going to Palermo, the city where he was born and raised, the mafia groups are trying by any means to remove his candidacy from the election.
Not the last in the tabloids of popularity
Cosa Nostra is just an endless source of inspiration. Below are the films that are leading in the tabloids of popularity:
- "Godfather". The film is about the criminal world of the city of New York, where the Sicilian mafia family Corleone sets its rules. The action takes place from 1945 to 1955. The head of the Corleone family is Don Vito, whose daughter is getting married soon. The Second World War took many lives, but the beloved son of Don Vito, who has always been the pride of the family, manages to survive and return home. But contrary to his father, Michael is not going to take part in the cruel family business, because he is a hero of the war. At the same time, a redistribution of influence and power takes place, which is preceded by endless attempts on the head of the family. The film quickly became infinitely popular, which served as a convincing motivation for the release of the films "The Godfather-2", "The Godfather-3". This trilogy, covering a grandiose period from 1901 to 1980, is still considered a masterpiece and is leading in the tabloids of films dedicated to the organization of Cosa Nostra.
- "Crime novel." The film takes place during the turbulent 70s in Italy. Three guys named Lebanese, Ice and Dandy want to conquer Rome and become the embodiment of fear. This trinity becomes the most dangerous gang in the whole country and in the entire criminal world. They begin to engage in daring abductions, contract killings and drug trafficking. Investigation of the case is entrusted to the police captain Schialogge, who, having attacked the trail of the gang, is aimed at stopping lawlessness. After all, he knows that soon the guys will become bloodthirsty wolves, which will be difficult to stop. When the mafia, special services and terrorists become allies of these three gangsters, the police captain begins to realize that such people do not value their lives, but only bloody glory and gloomy honor.
- "Malavita." What do you think, what kind of life do your neighbors live and is it possible to know everything about them? What about those neighbors who can knock on your door late at night? That is how the writer Blake settles in a provincial French town with his family and a dog named Malavita on the same day. After this, the centuries-old calm of the town came to an end. How could a supermarket burn out? What happened to the plumber? What can a cute guy carry with him? In fact, no one suspected that Blake was the former head of the mafia who was being persecuted, and that the local government hid him in the town. Unexpectedly in the city appears the mafia - Cosa Nostra ...
Not the most famous, but insanely realistic
- The Departed. Two people who graduated from the police academy are doing one thing, but they have different tactics. One works in law enforcement, but is an agent of the mafia, and the second is a “mole”, which was introduced into the mafia. Each of them believes that it is he who will be able to neutralize opponents, but suddenly something changes in their inner world.
- "The funeral". Family laws are the main thing. Therefore, when Johnny Tempio is killed, his brothers must take revenge on his brother's killers. They manage to commit lynching, but the consequences of such a decision are tragic for them ...
- The Cursed Way. 30s of the twentieth century. At first glance, it seems that the life of the average American Michael Sullivan is quite ordinary. He is a good father, a family man, a responsible worker, but his eldest son is tormented by the question of where his father leaves his car every morning in the morning. One day Michael manages to quietly get into his father’s car and see what his father is doing. It turns out that Michael is a gangster where witnesses cannot be left alive. Therefore, in order to save his son, Michael will have to disobey his boss.
Crime as a whim
The heyday and continued impunity of lawlessness on the part of such a criminal group has generated a great many ideas on the use of its glory for their own needs. The famous singer Mr. Credo (Cosa Nostra became a source of creative inspiration for him), devoted more than one of his songs to the organization. In Russia, there is also a whole group bearing the same name.
Quite accurately, the whole history of Cosa Nostra as a criminal group, as well as their wars with other mafia organizations, horrible murders, etc. transferred to the film of the same name - “Cosa Nostra”. The film came out very realistic, creepy and bloody.
Modern mafia
Despite its considerable age, the Italian mafia is not the only one in the world, as you might have guessed. The sphere of its influence is very large, however, it spreads within one country, with the exception of Italian-American families - their activity is also limited by the states entrusted to them in “care”.
Other criminal groups located in different countries on different continents use or have used their own methods of "control over the situation."
The most serious
The most famous criminal gangs that continue to this day are the Japanese Yakuza, Chinese Triads, Russian organized crime groups, Colombian drug cartels, the Jewish and Albanian mafia, Mexican cartels, the Turkish mafia (despite the name, it is located, in addition to Turkey, in the Netherlands, the USA , Austria, England, etc.) and others. Cosa Nostra has an international format. Despite their differences, all these criminal groups share one common goal - money laundering, fraud, murder, robbery, drug trafficking and other illegal acts. I recall the words “the mafia is immortal”, which means that the source of inspiration for cinema in this direction will not be impoverished for a long time. The sad reality.