At first glance, Block 181 it might seem like a story like many others: there is drugthere is struggle between neighborhoodsthere is the control of the squares and also the law of overwhelm and of violence which seems to govern any human relationship in a society that lives in the shadows, nestling in the bowels of the main streets of the center. Why give her a chance, then? Simple, because Sky, who created the series together with TapelessFilm and Red Joint Film, went beyond the classic tale of the suburbs in search of redemption by laying the foundations for a much more interesting story: that of three boys, two boys and one girl, who join forces to rebel against the system and build their own identity, as if they were a single entity. They are Bea, Ludo and Mahd, played respectively by the very good Laura Osma, Alessandro Piavani and Andrea Dodero: three young people in search of their own place in the world who mature a very uncommon carnal and intellectual relationship in a testosteronic story like that of Block 181. In this polyamorous relationship of Bertolucci style that sees Bea, Ludo and Mahd touching, rubbing and making love sealing the belonging to a much more solid lineage than the blood offered by the family, the boys try the path ofemancipation caressing the idea of freedom.
In fact, each of them has a bond behind them that they would like to break: Bea would like to get away from Misathe band of the Latins residing in the Milanese suburbs to which she belongs, for the sake of her mother and herself; Ludo, a bourgeois party-goer with a clean face, would like to find a way to fill the gap boredom without fear of being killed by someone; while Mahd hopes, sooner or later, to sever the umbilical cord that binds him to his uncle Rizzo (Alessio Praticò) and to get out of the organized terror that the gang of Italians has been sowing in the Bloc for too long. The paths of these three characters who, on paper, should hate and fight each other as a Shakespeare tragedy would prescribe cross almost by chance: between them almost immediately a deep chemistry is triggered that manages to make them feel invincible and self-confident. Belonging to that anything but platonic relationship – get ready for some spicy scenes – manages in some way to reassure them and instill confidence in them, leading them, without realizing it, to take the longest step: betray their families, steal lots of cocaine and try to set up on their own.
The law of Block 181 that the directors Giuseppe Capotondi, Ciro Visco and Matteo Bonifazio stage, however, does not forgive betrayals, and that is why, starting from the third episode, the series becomes an adrenaline-pumping adventure to understand if our heroes will be able to take home the skin or not. Around their company, a quadrille of characters ranging from Lorenzo, a dealer with a strong character played by Alessandro Tedeschi, to Snakehis right-hand man and head of drug delivery to clients played by Psalm, that in Block 181 he split into the quadruple role as an actor, music supervisor, music producer and creative producer. Through particularly violent scenes, where there is no room for either compassion or solidarity, the series makes us breathe the unease of a neighborhood where everyone is terrified but still eager for the protection of the brutes, of those who, in order not to lose face, must arm themselves with bars to teach their opponents a lesson and to make everyone understand who is in charge. The result of all this is a majestic series, with three very good guys that we are sure they will make their way and on which Sky is aiming so much to renew it for another season even before seeing it debut on TV. You have the task of looking at it and, possibly, of devouring it.
Psalm: “I try to be good”
Block 181: the first trailer of the highly anticipated Sky series with Salmo
Block 181photos from the Sky series
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Source: Vanity Fair
