Ketticè (2026): Plot, Cast & News | Giovanni Tortorici

Palermo, 2012. A 16-year-old named Giulio is drifting, unmotivated and detached from school, with no clear sense of direction. His life takes a turn when he meets Ketty, a confident peer who pulls him out of his daily rut. That is the setup for Ketticè, a new drama directed by Giovanni Tortorici and produced under the banner of Luca Guadagnino, which is set to hit theaters on September 3, 2026.

The film, running 107 minutes, places Monica Bellucci in a supporting role as a mother who is both loud and trapped by expectations. In a recent interview, Bellucci described her character as someone who "yells" and is the "victim of a social role," offering a glimpse into a performance that seems to explore domestic frustration rather than maternal warmth. The casting marks another high-profile turn for Bellucci, who has built a career on alternating between iconic screen sirens and more grounded, emotionally raw figures.

A Story of Restless Youth

At the heart of Ketticè is Giulio, played by Salvatore Gallina. He is listless, dissatisfied, and moving through his teenage years without passion or ambition. The film tracks his encounters with Ketty, portrayed by Rachele Testagrossa, whose self-assurance stands in stark contrast to his own aimlessness. Their connection becomes a possible escape route from the gray monotony that surrounds him, though the narrative hints at complications rather than simple rescue.

Tortorici, whose directorial vision here leans into naturalistic drama, appears interested in the friction between youthful inertia and the pressure of social roles. The setting - Palermo in the early 2010s - adds a specific, sunbaked texture to the story, grounding Giulio’s internal drift in a city that feels both vibrant and stifling. The title itself, Ketticè, plays on the name of the girl who disrupts his routine, suggesting her centrality to whatever shift his character undergoes.

Bellucci’s Maternal Turn

Bellucci’s role as the mother is not the lead, but it carries thematic weight. The actress has spoken about how her character’s loudness is not just personality but a symptom of her circumstances. Being the "victim of a social role" implies a woman constrained by expectations - of motherhood, of domesticity - who expresses that entrapment through raised voice and frustration. It is a far cry from the glamorous parts that defined her earlier decades, and it signals a willingness to play against type in a project that prioritizes character over spectacle.

The film’s production pedigree, with Guadagnino as producer, aligns it with a certain strain of Italian cinema that favors emotional realism and slow-burning character studies. Guadagnino, known for his own meticulous attention to atmosphere and longing, likely saw in Tortorici’s material a kindred approach. The collaboration suggests that Ketticè will not rush its storytelling, allowing the audience to sit with Giulio’s ennui and the mother’s outbursts without easy resolution.

Cast and Release Details

The young leads, Gallina and Testagrossa, are relatively fresh faces compared to Bellucci’s established stardom. Their casting seems deliberate: the film needs authentic, unpolished performances to sell the teenage malaise. Testagrossa’s Ketty is described as more self-assured than Giulio, which positions her as a catalyst rather than a mere love interest. Gallina’s Giulio, meanwhile, has to carry the film’s central inertia without turning it into a slog.

Ketticè is scheduled for release on September 3, 2026, a date that places it in the early fall festival circuit window, though no festival announcements have been confirmed. Its TMDb rating sits at 0/10, which reflects that no audience reviews are in yet, not a reflection of quality - a common placeholder for unreleased titles. The runtime of 107 minutes suggests a compact, focused drama, one that likely avoids the sprawling epics Guadagnino sometimes favors in favor of a tighter, more intimate scope.

For Bellucci fans, the film offers a chance to see her in a mode that is unglamorous and confrontational. For audiences drawn to Italian drama about disaffected youth, Ketticè promises a character study with a specific sense of place and a clear-eyed view of how social roles can crush people - especially mothers who are expected to absorb the frustration of everyone around them. The yelling, in that context, becomes less a flaw of the character and more a kind of protest.

The production’s choice to center a mother’s rage within a coming-of-age story is notable. Most films about teenage alienation keep adults on the margins, but Bellucci’s presence, even in a supporting role, forces the viewer to consider the parallel lives of parents who are also struggling with their assigned places. That dual focus - on the boy who cannot find his footing and the mother who cannot escape her own - gives Ketticè a layered quality that could elevate it beyond a simple youth drama.

As the release date approaches, expect more details about the film’s festival trajectory and early critical reactions. For now, the premise is intriguing: a Palermo summer, a restless boy, a confident girl, and a mother whose voice cuts through the heat. Whether that voice ultimately liberates or isolates her remains to be seen on screen.

Source: Hollywood Reporter