Twice Born tells the story of interconnecting parallels stories upon one within the context of a story art. The film toggles between present-day scenes depicting the mother and son's complicated relationship and flashes of the tragic love affair between Gemma and Diego (Emile Hirsch) in the early 1990s that led to Pietro's conception. The boy's birth was the product of rather bizarre and secretive circumstances that places his biological kinship under suspicion, and the point of Gemma's trip is to reveal to him the truth about his filiation, but it turns out that she herself only knows half the story, if not less.We are then later to come in between. We then see Gemma and Diego's love is the sort that only seems possible in Europe. The beginning of their story has the gravitas of the destine-bound love at the center of Julio Medem's Lovers of the Artic Circle, but none of its focus, as Twice Born quickly turns out to be more interested in reveling in the secrets of its storyline than in its sentiments. Gemma and Diego grow apart as she discovers she can't have children and is scared that her sterility will make him chase other women. Although it does spark some chemistry and connections, the later scenes have a separate distance from one another, and it appears to feel more so all over the place. Twice Born does extend and could have been a little shorter, however there are an audience of these type of films.

As an actor, Sergio Castellito brings out the very combination of duality and simplicity; as a director, he moves his audiences by confusion and despair ever present both in human life and on screen. Based on the novel by the director's wife, Margaret Mazzantini, TWICE BORN is, above all, a display of various characters, even on the cost of the historical context of the most recent and so cruel war in Europe, the Balkan conflict of the 1990s.The New York Times reviewer A.O. Scott criticizes the movie for "missing any sense of history or politics;" David Rooney in Toronto Review observes that "the story reeks of cheap sentiment masquerading as social and political engagement" labeling it as an "overwrought and overlong melodrama;" however, what strikes us most from the very beginning are the characters - "this luckless generation" imprisoned in their 'worlds' of inner conflicts and dualities surely influenced by the very historical and political situation. The latter aspect is, to some extent, significant. Many are the victims of the conflict, the most touching one is young girl of incredible athletic abilities. But this purely political aspect remains in the background. The story is played against the backdrop of historical context and appears to serve as a manifestation of a labyrinth-like drama that life very often is.The true embodiment of this labyrinth-like drama seems to be, at first sight, the protagonist, Gemma (Penelope Cruz), a woman whose destiny is shaped not only by the nationality that represents 'freedom' to the whole context (mind you the scene when everyone is supposed to say the most important word for them) but also by all the people around her, in particular Diego (Emile Hirsch) and 'her son' Pietro (Pietro Castellito), a neurotic character with notes of coming of age drama. Excellent vitality to the story is contributed by her old friend Gojco (Adnan Haskovic) and a Bosnian woman Aska (Saadet Aksoy). Thanks to them, the movie almost bursts out with emotions. It is sometimes overwhelming and sometimes terribly confusing how we, as viewers, discover the motives that govern the characters. The story, built primarily on flashbacks and sometimes even flashbacks within flashbacks, occurs to manifest the blending past and presence in order to keep a viewer alert and supply the desirable tension.The performances of the cast of quite multinational backgrounds appear to be very well fit to the tension of the drama. Penelope Cruz, having already played under Castellito's direction in DON'T MOVE, portrays a rather sullen character of a mother amidst the ruins of conflicts and war. She also depicts a character of interesting choices, especially as a wife. Closer to the end we get, more need for display of emotions there is, and Ms Cruz handles that with exceptional vitality and subtlety. One of the most powerful scenes of the movie is her reunion with Aska, actually, a biblical "Hagar-like" substitute mother... Emile Hirsch underlines some interesting aspects of his character as well, being particularly convincing and absorbing at the psychologist scene. There, you get the essence of who the couple are...another fine manifestation of the past hidden within the walls of subconsciousness. Aska, in that case, is a highlight.Interesting music score, striking cinematography by Gianfilippo Corticelli, production designing by Francesco Frigeri contribute to the pluses of the movie's influence on the senses. Violence, however, seems to create tension of moments in a flawed manner. The scenes of war cruelty or the rape ae depicted in a too graphic way excluding any hints of deduction. From the short scenes of pregnant Aska or the very birth give a slight undertone of viewers' supposing conclusions that Diego is not the father. Nevertheless, not being prepared for any facts, you may be taken with some moments, especially Diego's insane behavior facing the protesters.After all, TWICE BORN is worth seeing as a highly emotional screen production. What can a man be amidst the roar of hatred? What can human voice for peace be? Merely a glimpse of a moment like a dove that carries a brighter message? We cannot skip that moment; we must give him time and moment to speak up...

Deeply touching, thought-provoking and highly emotional, Twice Born explores themes of love and war in a story that depicts the brutal realism of the events that took place in Bosnia in the early 1990s. Penelope Cruz is remarkably captivating in the leading role, as she gives a tremendously tender performance portraying a woman that is reminiscing about her past love and the events that transpired during the Bosnian conflict. The film smoothly switches between the different timelines, and expertly uses poignant twists to create a story that is both romantic and utterly gripping, but above all else has a profound emotional impact of the viewer. Not only is the essence of the story immensely powerful, it is also underpinned by a very moving soundtrack, one that further adds to the intensity of the film, making Twice Born a very emotionally challenging cinematic experience.

¨Twice Born¨ is a thought-provoking war drama crammed with thrills , intrigue , family relationship and an agreeable love story . It tells the story of Gemma (Penelope Cruz), an Italian single mother who decides to bring her teenage son, Pietro (Pietro Castellitto) to battle-scarred city of Sarajevo, where his father died in the Bosnian conflict years ago . There they see the country where he was born and where she fell in love with Pietro's now-deceased father, photographer Diego (Emile Hirsch). It's a tense arrival, one that foreshadows the struggles Gemma must face as she relives her past. Scenes of the present are intercut with those of the past, when Gemma was a student working on her doctorate in Sarajevo in the early 1980s. The two had formed a romance in a very different Sarajevo during the 1984 Winter Olympics . But when the Balkan war loomed , Gemma was forced to flee to Italy with her infant son. As she tours the city 18 years later, she uncovers a terrifying hidden truth . There , she was introduced to the passionate American photographer Diego by her zany Bosnian poet guide, Gojko (Adnan Hasković) kickstarting a steamy romance that leads to marriage but, unfortunately for them, a lack of children leads to unexpected consequences . This interesting film deals with a tragedy of human emotions pushed over the edge . This wartime movie picture is an enjoyable tale with an interesting characterizing about a few characters , tragic drama , emotion and including some war scenes . Its style is pretty much sour , dry and realistic as well in the atmosphere as in the fresh dialog . Sergio Castellito returns to top form, with an intelligent and engaging script which uses dramatic situations to give us a good movie in a high sense and intimate sensitivity and that kept me entertained for the almost two hours and some of duration . This stirring as well as intimate story is a passionate retelling and a touching love story between Cruz and Hirsch interrupted by a fateful war . Storyline relies heavily on the continued relationship among them ; in spite of , the movie results to be better than average , being surprisingly good and compellingly realized . Rightly enjoyable and fun-filled , milestone drama which neatly combines tragedy , drama , entertaining situations and unexpected finale . Flawless story with a quartet of sensational protagonists , all of them give fine performances , as Penélope Cruz , Emile Hirsch , Adnan Haskovic and Saadet Aksoy . Unforgettable Penelope Cruz , she parades sexily at her best and more relaxed and enticing than ever . The hit of the show is undoubtedly for the fetching Penelope who gives one of the best screen acting , she pays a nervous and aged woman who flies to Sarajevo with her son , marking the first time they've been back since escaping the Bosnian War 16 years earlier. I liked everyone in the excellent cast, and the male and female actors , especially Penelope Cruz , were all very attractive . I have seen many, Hollywood-dramas that couldn't compare with this one, but many give them a higher rating because they are Hollywood-made . Here Penelope Cruz adds the Italian language to a resume full of English and Spanish speaking roles. ¨Twice born¨ seems to be be a family film , because it has been written , produced and directed by parents ; as Penélope Cruz acted and produced , her brother Eduardo Cruz composed an adequate soundtrack ; Sergio Castellitto played , wrote , produced and directed , his wife Margaret Mazzantini wrote the novel and their son Prieto played an important role . This attractive Italian/Spanish film was well produced by Guido De Laurentiis, Piero Amati ,Jaime Ortiz De Artiñano , Roberto Sessa , Fernando Bovaira , which got critics and moviegoers polarized in their opinions. The R-rated drama film was screened in a handful of theaters in the U.S. but its biggest audience is on the DVD. The motion picture was well directed by Sergio Castellitto . He is an actor and writer, known for The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008), The star maker (1995) and Don't move (2004) in which he also directed to Penélope Cruz . Sergio has been married to Margaret Mazzantini since 1987 , a known writer who wrote this film and Don't move , they have four children , on of them results to be Pietro Castellitto . Rating : Above average , worthwhile watching .