Picking off Silvio

A movie with the provocative title «Shooting Silvio» causes a furor in Italy.

After its broadcast on April 13 on the Sky Italia cable channel, «Shooting Silvio» sent the representatives of Silvio Berlusconi's new party into a furor.

The hero of the movie, a young writer obsessed with Silvio Berlusconi, whom he blames all the ills of Italy on, decides to kill the president.

Dating back to 2007, «Shooting Silvio» has only ever been released in Italy and at the Annecy Film Festival in France.

Beatric Lorenzin, one of Berlusconi's party deputies, stated: «This just shows how bad television has become; it's a hymn to violence and incites people to commit atrocious acts against the man and the president of the council, Silvio Berlusconi. This kind of broadcast has nothing to do with freedom of expression.»

In effect, while it is legitimate not to appreciate Berlusconi and his never-ending faux-pas, it is regrettable to support this type of production, with its nauseating content and obscene hook.

Three years ago, «Death of a President» sparked similar emotions with its assassination scene of George W. Bush. Just like «Shooting Silvio», the English movie was buried in criticism as soon as it was released.