I watched this movie on television, totally unprepared and having heard nothing about it. It was 12 o'clock Wednesday night and I accidentally caught it in the first 5 minutes. It was one of those nights when I wanted to watch something light for half an hour and then go to bed. Before I knew it, it was 6 a.m. and I could not overcome what I had seen! I later searched for info and realized that the people involved in making the film are not your standard TV movie makers. The power of this film lies in its ability to touch important issues in a subtle way without didactic fireworks.The script is realistic yet with a poetic flair, the quality of photography is supreme and the actors ARE the Carati's. In spite of its long duration, I don't think the film should be categorized as an epic. An epic usually involves fanfares, passionate pretentious statements in the script and clear messages on right and wrong. This film is run by the quality of life itself, where people live their lives and make history by their own simple choices be they right or wrong. At times, the story seems a bit melodramatic but it is the quality of the script that allows you to accept it, as there are no intentional cheap tricks to move the viewer. A sense of humor is always there to balance things out and life goes on in its subtle power as people work, love and have children in the foreground of history.