A delicately shaded humanistic drama set in post 911 US, involving characters from different nationalities. Some of them are illegal residents, living under the constant possibility of detection and deportation. While the romantic quadrangle has been nicely presented, what holds attention is the plight of the large floating population of undocumented aliens, whose bliss in paradise may be rudely interrupted by any small banana peel in the form of encounter with the authorities. There is a thriving profession of immigration lawyers. Manna from heaven is the proverbial green card. As the young Syrian drummer, having fallen foul with the police, says through the bars of his cage in a detention center, " you are outside and I am inside", as though speaking of alien species. I am left a bit puzzled by the contradiction between the juicy bunch of grapes America appears through the eyes of aspiring to be legalized residents, and the harrowing visions of Michael Moore. Maybe they are just the vastly different views of insiders and outsiders.
2 comments:
I recently revisited the movie and loved its subtle handling of characters and their story. All performers are wonderful, but it is terrific to see Richard Jenkins giving one of the best performances in his diligent career.
The director Tom McCarthy also made "The Station Agent", another delicate story about a lonely man opening himself to strangers coming into his life.
Jenkin's performance is so unusual that one almost forgets he is an actor and we are seeing a film.
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