Nuovomondo (Golden Door) (2006)
A desperately poor Sicilian family at the turn of the century emigrates to the US. Encountering difficulties at Ellis Island, the oldest secures his entry by marrying a British woman who happened to sail on the same ship.

This film explores in close-up the humiliating procedures used to determine who would be admitted into the United States. It is a piece of beautifully intimate, creative cinematography. It goes far to communicate the earth-shaking impact that emigration had on Italians emigrating to America. Not a big, notable or very dramatic story; rather, it is touching and artistic.

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Hurt Locker (2008)
This movie explores what it was like to live under the tension of working in a bomb disposal unit during the Iraq War. Some people don’t last very long, others thrive.

Hangs together as a story, makes sense, is believable drama – even managed to make me wriggle in my chair. There is nothing profound here, just the ponderous issues of warfare.

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A History of Violence (2005)
A random incident of violence in a small town exposes the fact that a well-liked local has been living there under a false identity.

This movie didn’t really work for me. The sex scenes were embarrassingly graphic, the confrontations felt staged, the story dragged between the action pieces and a lot of the dialogue was trite.

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The Good Shepherd (2006)
This movie explores the career of an early CIA officer through the lens of his own reflections as he tries to determine the source of the security leak that caused the Bay of Pigs Invasion to fail.

An interesting, if slow, spy movie. Although it may only be inspired by actual events rather than driven by them, it tells a plausible story about the beginnings of modern tradecraft. I thought the non chronological progression took away from, rather than adding to the story. The film contained a slate of good actors who were entirely convincing. The story made sense and was engaging, but was not “gripping”.

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Biutiful (2010)
A man living in Barcelona struggles as a single parent to provide for his two kids. He gets paid to arrange work for illegal immigrants and manage the sale of forged designer goods. Oh, and he also makes a few bucks for the service of passing messages back and forth between loved-ones and their recently deceased.

This is a touching tale of a man who brings a lot of heart to the dog-eat-dog world of illegal immigrants working in Barcelona. Intimate images, gut-wrenching tension, tough choices, messy realities. Javier Bardem so fully inhabits his role in this movie, I can’t imagine anyone else successfully carrying it. Many other fine acts besides. I can’t stop thinking about this movie.

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Big Fish (2008)
An estranged son visits his dying father and tries to make amends. But the former traveling salesman’s penchant for tall tales continuously irritates the young journalist – until he figures out how to tease out the truth.

This was a tall tale in the defense of telling tall tales: entertaining, engaging and unpredictable. Nice ending.

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Birth (2004)
Just as the main character is recovering from the loss of her husband and making plans to remarry, a ten year old talks her into believing he is the reincarnation of her old flame.

This was a disturbing story that spun further and further out of control. In the end I felt like I was taken for a ride.

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Pan e Tulipani (2000)
Inadvertently left at a wayside stop while on a bus tour with her family, a middle aged woman decides on a whim to take a tour of her own to a place she has always wanted to see – Venice. Little does she expect, this one left turn will end up changing her whole life and everyone connected to her.

Rosalba Barletta really carries the credibility of this story with her powerful performance as the main character. She is sublimely skilled in subtle gestures which make all of her interactions engaging. It is a simple, heart-warming story employing characters I would enjoy having for neighbors.

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The Station Agent (2003)
A man leads a very small life making miniature trains for hobbyists until his boss dies and provides in his will a place for him to live – an abandoned train station in upstate New Jersey. In his new, isolated home he makes a couple new friends.

I found this slice-of-life, non-story of a story curiously satisfying – touching even. The way these three odd, unremarkable people carrying on with their personal dramas make for a memorable movie. This story also offers an interesting look at the hobby of train spotting.

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