ITALIAN FILM FESTIVAL
My Killer Buddy (Un Amico di Famiglia)
Ten-year-old Denni is determined to save his mother from his abusive father. He hires “Secco,” a down-and-out would-be hitman, unaware that his plan will lead both of them into an unexpected alliance and a dangerous coming-of-age adventure.
Director
Gianluca Santoni
Actors
Andrea Lattanzi • Francesco Lombardo • Barbara Ronchi • Andrea Sartoretti • Swamy Rotolo
1h 39m • Rated M • Drama, Crime • Italy, Croatia • Eng Subs
The island setting, the modest production, and the humor that often arises from character rather than contrivance work together to keep the film from ever feeling flat. On the flip side, a few feel the pacing is uneven, or that the secondary characters don’t always land. Still, even these criticisms tend to be soft and in the service of a film that is more heartwarming than perfect.
Overall, the consensus sees The Ballad of Wallis Island as a warm, wistful, and soul-soothing film—modest in scope but rich in feeling. It’s not trying to dazzle, but it digs in where it matters: loss, memory, music, human connection. For many, it’s one of the more emotionally satisfying films of 2025.
The Ballad of Wallis Island is a quietly charming British comedy-drama directed by James Griffiths, written by and starring Tom Basden and Tim Key, alongside Carey Mulligan. The story centers on Charles, a lonely lottery winner living on a remote Welsh island, who invites his favorite folk duo—Herb McGwyer and Nell Mortimer—to reunite for a private performance. His motive isn’t just fandom; there are unresolved heartbreaks, nostalgia, and grief behind his idealistic gesture.
Critics are largely enamored with the film’s balance of humor and melancholy. Tim Key’s performance as Charles is praised for being endearingly awkward, verbose, and heart-on-sleeve, often using verbal wit to stave off silence. Basden as Herb, and Mulligan as Nell, deliver subtle, emotionally resonant performances, especially when the old romantic and artistic tensions surface—and you begin to feel what’s been lost, as well as what hope might remain. The original music is another highlight; the songs feel lived in, and the film uses them not as spectacle, but as emotional anchors.
Some reviewers point out that the premise is familiar—a fan’s devotee, reunited artists, romantic regrets—but argue that the execution elevates it.
CRITICS ROUNDUP
BOOK SEATS FOR
My Killer Buddy (Un Amico di Famiglia)
Tue 13 Jan 8:00pm ncp
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ncp - no complimentary passes
cap - captioned for hard of hearing
Drifting into fantasies of power, their 10 year-old son Denni (Francesco Lombardo) settles on murder-for-hire as the answer to his family’s problems, and approaches Secco (Andrea Lattanzi), a kind-hearted petty thief and failed armed robber whom the local kids have built up in their minds as a ‘super-killer’. An oddly charming battle of wits and wills between Secco and Denni ensues, with the former hoping to secure the cash for the hit job on Fabio without actually doing it, and the latter immediately suspecting this. Their adventure becomes by turns comical and terrifying. A quirky yet powerful take on the meaning of fatherhood. Renee Mark
Critics Roundup
A darkly tender coming-of-age tale
Ten year old Denni has a mission: to save his mother from his father’s violence. For this reason he devises an infallible plan: he will have him killed by someone who kills people for a living, a super-killer. Among the rutted tracks, staved-in boats and never-to-befinished blocks of flats on the coastline of northeastern Italy between Porto Corsini and Cesenatico, industrialist Fabio (Andrea Sartoretti) has been beating his wife Maria (Barbara Ronchi) for years and getting away with it.