Although there are some beautiful cinematographic moments, witty scripts, morally benign intention, and promising acting here and there in the film, I regret to say that the film is not good enough to win a Silver Lion (but I have to admit that I haven't seen all films in the competition).
I was impressed by the initial and the ending scenes. In the beginning, the magnificent mountain in Sicily shows how tough it is to live there; in the end, the milk river shows how difficult it is for the Italian immigrants to struggle in a murky stream full of uncertainties. Another brilliant scene is when the boat was leaving the harbor, splitting the crowds on the land and on the boat into two, with the rhythmic noise of the boat engine in the background.
Apart from these well-framed visual presentations, the film also shows some witty conversations from the Mancuso family (e.g. the dad's hack on the blocks IQ examination), and strong acting from Vincenzo Amato (as Salvatore Mancuso) and Aurora Quattrocchi (as Fortunata Mancuso).
The director, however, did not handle the time on the boat well. The nebulous feeling between the Mancuso family and Lucy Reed did not sweeten up the unpleasant experience of immigrants on the boat. Instead, it spoils and endures the difficult time on the boat. Or, perhaps even worse, the existence of Lucy Reed is not necessary at all. This character weakens the whole plot, making everything alienated and inconsistent.
Despite the unsatisfactory arrangements, the issues presented in this film do show that immigration policies haven't changed much through time and space. Today, immigrants, particularly those who want to enter the border of the US, Canada, Australia, the EU, all need to go through the equally, if not more, painful and prolonged process. This film certainly mirrors the inhumanity in immigration policies across time and space.
I was impressed by the initial and the ending scenes. In the beginning, the magnificent mountain in Sicily shows how tough it is to live there; in the end, the milk river shows how difficult it is for the Italian immigrants to struggle in a murky stream full of uncertainties. Another brilliant scene is when the boat was leaving the harbor, splitting the crowds on the land and on the boat into two, with the rhythmic noise of the boat engine in the background.
Apart from these well-framed visual presentations, the film also shows some witty conversations from the Mancuso family (e.g. the dad's hack on the blocks IQ examination), and strong acting from Vincenzo Amato (as Salvatore Mancuso) and Aurora Quattrocchi (as Fortunata Mancuso).
The director, however, did not handle the time on the boat well. The nebulous feeling between the Mancuso family and Lucy Reed did not sweeten up the unpleasant experience of immigrants on the boat. Instead, it spoils and endures the difficult time on the boat. Or, perhaps even worse, the existence of Lucy Reed is not necessary at all. This character weakens the whole plot, making everything alienated and inconsistent.
Despite the unsatisfactory arrangements, the issues presented in this film do show that immigration policies haven't changed much through time and space. Today, immigrants, particularly those who want to enter the border of the US, Canada, Australia, the EU, all need to go through the equally, if not more, painful and prolonged process. This film certainly mirrors the inhumanity in immigration policies across time and space.