The Immigrant (2014)

Sick Product of a Sick System

Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

It's 1921. Polish sisters Ewa (Marion Cotillard) and Magda Cybulska arrive in NYC. Magda is quarantined and Ewa is accused of having low morals threatened with deportation. She's desperate to stay and find her sister. Bruno Weiss (Joaquin Phoenix) manages the burlesque Bandits' Roost. He zeros in on the vulnerable Ewa and eventually pushes her into prostitution. She tracks down her relatives but her uncle gets the police and she's sent back to Ellis Island slated for deportation. There she sees a performance by Orlando the magician (Jeremy Renner) who turns out to be Bruno's cousin Emil.This is a beautiful looking film. James Gray is able to achieve that much. The actors are first rate and Marion Cotillard is a true standout here. I love that her character isn't a simple innocent. She's smart enough not to trust Bruno right from the start. I don't like Bruno's character as much. He's a damaged person but the movie seems intent to create sympathy for him. Joaquin has a lovely vulnerability but he needs to be a tougher villain. Overall, this movie is simply too slow although it is quite beautiful.

The Immigrant is a beautiful movie, marked by great photography and direction, and powerful acting, all told in a play that to my mind is a morality tale for modern times. Marion Cotillard's performance is especially powerful and was deserving of an Oscar. Mr. Phoenix continues to create a body of work that will rank him among our best actors. It is the tale of a virginal young woman escaping with her sister from the horrors of war in a country where both her parents were killed. Ewa the young woman is separated from her sister, sick with lung disease, at the port of entry in 1921 New York. She is determined to get her sister back and to survive she allows herself to be helped by Bruno, the Phoenix character, a man of questionable morals who leads her into prostitution. He becomes charmed by her innocence and dedication in spite of the life he has led her into, and continues to help her hoping that her response will lead to a love for him. The interplay between the two main characters is great cinema. When Ewa gets her sister back i could feel her well earned joy, and feel sorrow for Bruno, left to be punished but finally finding salvation by helping the young woman he came to love.

Marion Cotillard puts on an impressive performance as a Polish woman immigrating to the United States in 1921. Upon arriving on Ellis Island, she has one bad experience after another. We see how even today people trying to enter the United States - most of them from Latin America - are more likely to spend time in detention facilities. Worse still, politicians claim that people move to the US to import drugs or steal our jobs.Like I said, it's a good movie. Usually one whom I've seen in glamorous roles, Marion Cotillard pulls off this waif-like role perfectly. Darius Khondji's cinematography gives the viewer the feeling of a truly grim existence. I recommend the movie.

The Immigrant has to be one of the most overlooked films of 2014. It only came out in limited release, but I believe the film should have received more press, especially with the talent involved. This is a sweeping melodrama that has such a captivating story that hearkens back to days of old when these kind of films were released almost weekly. This story is also a history lesson in a sense that the film gives off a vibe of 1920's New York during an era of immigration, prostitution, and Prohibition. The film shows the dangers that these foreign newcomers must face in a strange, new land.James Gray's film is about a woman named Ewa who arrives in Ellis Island with her sister, Magda after coming from Poland. The sisters are separated as tuberculosis overtaken Magda. Ewa is forced out into the NYC streets where this man named Bruno takes her under his wing in the form of prostitution. She does not like this life, but she may find a way out when she meets this magician named Orlando who promises her a new life and a chance to reunite with her sister.The acting is very, very good. A film with the three leads it has should not be confined to limited release. Joaquin Phoenix gives a very strong performance as Bruno. It seems a rather restrained performance, but great nonetheless. Speaking of great, Marion Cotillard also impresses me in her role as the scared, lost Ewa. Marion should have been nominated for an Oscar with this role. Finally, Jeremy Renner does an excellent job as Orlando, and I feel he should have more screen time.Overall, the Immigrant is a beautiful, well-acted film and it's a rare film that gives a woman this kind of role in this day and age. Not only are the actors are in fine form, this film features some amazing lush cinematography. The camera shots of 20th-century Manhattan is just beautiful. This film needed more press, but alas the lack of people seeing this movie does not stop it from being a good, old-fashioned period piece.My Grade: A-