A beguiling hymn to a semi-deserted Calabrian countryside and those who stayed behind, Il Dono portrays the village of Caulonia, which saw a dramatic decrease in inhabitants from roughly 15,000 in the '50s to just a few hundred people at the time of filming. In mainly long, static, observational takes and with next to no dialogue, Il Dono pieces together the fragments of a place guided by slow rhythms and which could be described as “old world” with traditions, rituals, and charm.
