I Want Her Dead

“Based on events that were too petty for fiction and too absurd to be true” (Gianluca Matarrese).
A regular at Visions du Réel (Gen_, VdR 2025; Il Posto, VdR 2022), Gianluca Matarrese continues his cinematic exploration of portraiture here, delivering a work of fiction performed by members of his own family – all non-professional actors. In a
small hamlet perched on a hillside in a Calabrian village, Louisa – impetuous and rebellious – clashes fiercely with her sister-in-law, Imma, sparking a corrosive conflict that fractures the delicate balance of the entire household. The daily barbs, mutual
accusations and grievances gradually draw the entire family into a destructive spiral. As tensions come to a head, three larger-than-life aunts stage a family “trial”, as absurd as it is desperate, in an attempt to restore harmony. A tragicomedy laced with
acerbic humour, I Want Her Dead traces the fine line between everyday resentments and irreparable rupture, offering an affectionate yet tense portrait of a family on the brink of implosion.

I Want Her Dead, 2025