Though little more than a Famous Five adventure writ large, Gabriele Salvatores' mix of thriller and rites-of-passage drama still packs a wallop thanks to ๊beautiful photography and fine performances.

Set over one long, hot summer in rural Italy, it tells of 10-year-old Michele (Giuseppe Cristiano) and his shocking discovery of another boy who's being kept in a hole near a desꦆerted farmhouse. What the kid is doing there is a mystery, but as the children become friends, his predicament forces Michele to reappraise both his parents and his own idealised view of the w♕orld.

Like last year's Respiro, I'm Not Scared evokes a sun-drenched, dusty vision of Mediterranean life with 🎀vivid clarity, while Salvatores' handling o🐻f his non-professional actors is exemplary. But there's more to this movie than photography and performances, with a nail-biting climax sealing a return to form of the award-winning Neapolitan director.