What is the order of the Inspector Montalbano movies?

In 1991, the Italian police procedural television series, Inspector Montalbano arrived on TV screens. The series, starring Luca Zingaretti in the title role, followed the story of Salvo Montalbano – an Italian inspector investigating crimes in the town of Vigàta, Sicily.

Produced and broadcast by RAI, the first season of Inspector Montalbano comprised two episodes, both of which aired in May 1999. Each episode ran around two-hours in length, acting very much as a collection of TV movies.

Due to the success of these ‘movies’ another two stories aired in 2000, followed by two in 2001, and then a further four in 2002. As the years continued, more instalments of Inspector Montalbano followed, with each new season containing between two or four new ‘movies’.

The Inspector Montalbano season breakdown as follows:

• Season One (1999) – Two stories: Il ladro di merendine / La voce del violino
• Season Two (2000) – Two stories: La forma dell’acqua / Il cane di terracotta
• Season Three (2001) – Two stories: La gita a Tindari / Tocco d’artista
• Season Four (2002) – Four stories: Il senso del tatto / Gli arancini di Montalbano / L’odore della notte / Il gatto e il cardellino
• Season Five (2005) – Two stories: Il giro di boa / Par condicio
• Season Six (2006) – Two stories: La pazienza del ragno / Il gioco delle tre carte
• Season Seven (2008) – Four stories: La vampa d’agosto / Le ali della sfinge / La pista di sabbia / La luna di carta
• Season Eight (2011) – Four stories: Il campo del vasaio / La danza del gabbiano / La caccia al tesoro / L’età del dubbio
• Season Nine (2013) – Four stories: Il sorriso di Angelica / Il gioco degli specchi / Una voce di notte / Una lama di luce
• Season Ten (2016) – Two stories: Una faccenda delicata / La piramide di fango
• Season Eleven (2017) – Two stories: Un covo di vipere / Come voleva la prassi
• Season Twelve (2018) – Two stories: La giostra degli scambi / Amore
• Season Thirteen (2019) – Two stories: L’altro capo del filo / Un diario del ’43
• Season Fourteen (2020) – Two stories: Salvo amato, Livia mia / La rete di protezione
• Season Fifteen (2021) – One story: Il metodo Catalanotti

Due to the popularity of Inspector Montalbano, the series has been sold around the world, with over 65 countries airing the ‘movies’. Inspector Montalbano has also been released on DVD in various territories too.

However, it should be noted that not every country has broadcast the Inspector Montalbano ‘movies’ in the correct order, and one or two broadcast discrepancies do exist. But should you be checking out Inspector Montalbano for the first time, worry not, because the full list of ‘movies’ is set out below, in the correct order.

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Every Inspector Montalbano ‘movie’ in order

To date, there are 37 Inspector Montalbano feature-length ‘movies’. The stories are presented here with their English language titles, in the correct viewing order:

• The Snack Thief (1999)
• The Voice of the Violin (1999)
• The Shape of Water (2000)
• The Mystery of the Terracotta Dog (2000)
• Excursion to Tindari (2001)
• The Artist’s Touch (2001)
• The Sense of Touch (2002)
• Montalbano’s Croquettes (2002)
• The Scent of the Night (2002)
• The Goldfinch and the Cat (2002)
• Turning Point (2005)
• Equal Time (2005)
• The Patience of the Spider (2006)
• Find the Lady (2006)
• August Flame (2008)
• The Wings of the Sphinx (2008)
• The Track of Sand (2008)
• Paper Moon (2008)
• The Potter’s Field (2011)
• The Gull’s Dance (2011)
• Treasure Hunt (2011)
• The Age of Doubt (2011)
• Angelica’s Smile (2013)
• Hall of Mirrors (2013)
• A Voice in the Night (2013)
• A Ray of Light (2013)
• A Delicate Matter (2016)
• The Mud Pyramid (2016)
• A Den of Vipers (2017)
• As Per Procedure (2017)
• Carousel (2018)
• Love (2018)
• The Other End of the Thread (2019)
• The Diary From ’43 (2019)
• Dearest Salvo… Your Livia (2020)
• The Safety Net (2020)
• The Sicilian Method (2021)

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The Young Montalbano in order

Due to the ongoing popularity of Inspector Montalbano, in 2012 a prequel series was commissioned with Michele Riondino taking on the role of a young Montalbano. This collection of stories focused on Montalbano’s early career, with events taking place before the main show.

Once again, each instalment of The Young Montalbano was set out like a feature-length movie. To date, 12 ‘movies’ have been produced.

Should you wish to watch The Young Montalbano in order, follow this list:

• Montalbano’s First Case (2012) – La prima indagine di Montalbano
• New Year’s Day (2012) – Capodanno
• Back to Basics (2012) – Ritorno alle origini
• Mortally Wounded (2012) – Ferito a morte
• The Third Secret (2012) – Il terzo segreto
• Seven Mondays (2012) – Sette lunedì
• The Man Who Followed Funerals (2015) – L’uomo che andava appresso ai funerali
• Room Number Two (2015) – La Stanza Numero Due
• Death on the High Seas (2015) – Morte In Mare Aperto
• The Transaction (aka The Settlement) (2015) – La Transazione
• The Honest Thief (2015) – Il Ladro Onesto
• An Apricot (2015) – Un’albicocca

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If you’re a fan of Salvo Montalbano or you’re just getting into the Inspector Montalbano ‘movies’, then you may wish to know that Inspector Montalbano is currently available on DVD.

The Inspector Montalbano Complete 1 – 10 DVD Box Set includes the first 36 movies, covering Seasons 1 – 14 of the show.

Inspector Montalbano Complete 1 – 10 Box Set is available from all good entertainment stockists, including Amazon UK. The box set is also available from Amazon US, but please note that this is a Region 2 DVD release, so the discs may not be playable on standard US DVD players.

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