I loved Ousmane. The filmmaker immediately brings you into the world of the titular character, an African immigrant listening to a message from back home about a marriage that he will surely miss. We then discover the mundanity of his life in what appears to be Montreal, a job folding towels which he is surely overqualified for, to the loose boxes in his apartment that he has yet to unpack, and the difficult conversations he has with his wife. It's clear that the immigration process hasn't been an easy transition for Ousmane.
And then the story takes off with his interaction with the older French Canadian woman on the bus who he recognizes from his building. What he learns from this relationship with Edith allows him in some ways to grieve the eventual loss of his mother back home, but also gives him the sense of purpose he had been longing for since moving to Canada.
I really enjoyed the pacing and the mood of the film as well. The long takes mixed, with the dark, sombre atmosphere really brought you into ousmane's world, giving it a sense of seriousness. Despite the fact that his life is normal enough, there is a sense of heaviness to every thing he does; it illustrates the very difficulty of immigration itself, that no matter the case, it is always a heavy burden to move's ones family across oceans for a better life.
Overall, this film is important in many ways. We need to showcase the stories of regular people who struggle with the problems we all go through on a daily basis. Also, we are not so different, despite our skin colour and cultural, religious backgrounds. We all suffer in similar ways, and therefore we can bond over these connected life experiences.
And then the story takes off with his interaction with the older French Canadian woman on the bus who he recognizes from his building. What he learns from this relationship with Edith allows him in some ways to grieve the eventual loss of his mother back home, but also gives him the sense of purpose he had been longing for since moving to Canada.
I really enjoyed the pacing and the mood of the film as well. The long takes mixed, with the dark, sombre atmosphere really brought you into ousmane's world, giving it a sense of seriousness. Despite the fact that his life is normal enough, there is a sense of heaviness to every thing he does; it illustrates the very difficulty of immigration itself, that no matter the case, it is always a heavy burden to move's ones family across oceans for a better life.
Overall, this film is important in many ways. We need to showcase the stories of regular people who struggle with the problems we all go through on a daily basis. Also, we are not so different, despite our skin colour and cultural, religious backgrounds. We all suffer in similar ways, and therefore we can bond over these connected life experiences.
