In 1858, in the Jewish quarter of Bologna, the Pope’s soldiers burst into the home of the Mortara family. By order of the cardinal, they have come to take Edgardo, their seven-year-old son. The child had been secretly baptized by his nurse as a baby and the papal law is unquestionable: he must receive a Catholic education. Edgardo's parents, distraught, will do anything to get their son back. Supported by public opinion and the international Jewish community, the Mortaras' struggle quickly takes a political dimension. But the Church and the Pope will not agree to return the child, to consolidate their increasingly wavering power…
Based on incredible true events, the gripping new historical drama from master auteur Marco Bellocchio comes to Haifa from the Official Selection of the Cannes Festival.
Filmography: Vincere (2009), Buongiorno, notte (2003), L'ora di religione (2002), Nel nome del padre (1972) Fists in the Pocket (1965).