A PE teacher moves to Italy's happiest village. Everyone smiles. Everyone is at peace. No one complains. And then we find out why.
Paolo Strippoli, one of the most exciting talents in Italian genre cinema, tells a story about healing that slowly becomes something far darker. Venice 2025 rewarded it with an award, audiences who saw it haven't forgotten it.
Fun fact
The film screened out of competition at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival - and still walked away with the Italian Federation of Film Clubs (FEDIC) award. Strippoli has been compared to a young Dario Argento, which is an extraordinary compliment for any filmmaker, let alone a debut solo feature director.
Paolo Strippoli (1985) is an Italian director who built his career in genre territory - from short films recognized at international festivals, to co-directing Netflix's "A Classic Horror Story" (2020). "The Holy Boy" marks his solo step into ambitious, auteur horror.