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which emphasizes how Primo's work is founded on an existential premise - he talks of the
produce as if it were part of an extended family - whereas for Barbara its importance is
merely economic. Because the narrative continues to be suppressive in nature, using
retardation principles to withhold a proper introduction of the characters, (Bordwell, 1995:
54-56) and providing no direct information about the narrative context, its structure is little
more than a framework around which viewers have to assemble the narrative fragments to
infer the state of things.
In several sequences these narrative gaps combine with a close alignment with Primo,
to induce viewers into a process of hypothesis-making and anticipation of his reactions. The
most emblematic is the scene portraying the first disquieting encounter between Primo and
Adelfo. It develops as Primo walks disconsolately around a city; suddenly the camera frames
him from the back, at the centre of two loudspeakers mounted on the roof of a van that draws
ever closer. The peculiar frame composition evokes a target entering the sights of a gun, and
the prolonged mystery concerning the identity of the people in the van endows the sequence
with a menacing quality. For several minutes the narrative has the dual function of inducing
hypotheses about Primo's life being in danger, and of eliciting emotional anxiety on account
of his unawareness of the threat. The take evolves with Primo eventually mirroring the
viewer's thoughts and emotions; he starts running as soon as he realizes that he is being
stalked. The tension is held a little longer until it is dissipated by the driver introducing
himself as Laura's friend.
The degree of narrative limitation and the incongruity between the value systems of
protagonists such as Primo and Barbara make it difficult for viewers to establish any narrative
schema based on cultural knowledge or plausible social interaction (Branigan, 1992: 27) and
so every new piece of information has revelatory quality. One example occurs when Primo
discovers Barbara's initiative to sell their property to a group of dignitaries. Returning home
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