There's no running away from grief (In America (DVD))

Name: Brown_eyes1984

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Product:	In America (DVD)
Date:	02/02/05 (135 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent cast performances, Extremely enjoyable

Disadvantages: Maybe not for 'macho' guys

'In America' is one of those films that captured my attention when I first saw it's trailers. Unfortunately not a lot has been said about it and it hasn't been widely advertised so many people are still in the dark about what it is actually about. I finally tracked it down on my online rental DVD shop and credit where credit is due, this is an amazing film. It met so many of my expectations and more. So without further ado here is my review that will hopefully persuade you to watch it!

*** The Plot ***

Johnny, Sarah, Christy and Ariel are a family in search of a new life. After losing their son 'Frankie' in an accident they leave their home country of Ireland and set up home in the country which promises to make all your dreams come true, 'America'. But will they find happiness in their new life or will they finally have to face that grief cannot be pushed to one side?

*** My Opinion On... ***

Here is my opinion on every aspect of the film from it's enjoyment to it's cast performances. Hopefully this will give you some idea of what to expect and whether or not this film is for you.

1) The Story

I found the story to be extremely moving. The message behind it is so true and although I've never lost anybody really close to me through death I could completely understand everything that was going on in the families life. It showed just how unafraid children are and captured their very spirits which brought a happy, feel-good atmosphere through the sadness of it all. It was so realistic to me it could have been an actual documentary based on real life experiences. It was original and that in itself is refreshing. I don't think anything different could have been done with the story. It all came perfectly together and it had me close to tears.

2) Cast Performances

A film cannot be a success without having a cast that can easily get into their roles and play them convincingly; it just wouldn't work. The thing that I enjoyed most about this film was the excellent performance every cast member gave. They really were gripping and a lot of praise has to go out to them because they all worked extremely well together and the characters actually could have been real. Here is my opinion on how each main cast member did:

* Emma Bolger

I'm going to start off with the youngest member of the cast who played 'Ariel'. Due to her age she hasn't appeared in many films and in fact this was her first performance ever on-screen. I was absolutely amazed at how good of an actress this young girl really is. Born in 1996 she was just six years old when she appeared in the film, but her acting skills beat some of the older actresses hands down.

As I mentioned she played 'Ariel'. Ariel is the youngest daughter of Johnny and Sarah. She is at that age where she is innocent and scared of nothing. She see's fear as a challenge and the energy she gives out is just heart warming. Emma herself has a great little vibe that she gives out and you just can't help but love her. She was so convincing in her role, there were absolutely no faults with her performance at all. I don't think anybody else could have played 'Ariel' better than she did and she is an actress I am definitely looking out for. Since 'In America' she has starred in a film called 'Intermission' in 2003 and she has also starred in a movie which is to be released sometime this year called 'Heidi'. This girl is definitely going to be a big star!

* Sarah Bolger

Sarah is both Emma's on-screen and off-screen sister and she played the role of 'Christy' the oldest daughter. Her acting skills are just as good as her sisters and you can tell it must be in their genes. She has appeared in a few more things than her sister but only one film before this one which was 'A Love Divided' in 1999. She was born in 1991 which would have made her eleven years old when she appeared in this film although she was only ten when she was hired.

Watching her role as 'Christy' was fascinating. She seemed to have an hidden depth that just reeled the viewer in. She didn't have to say anything for her emotions to show. Christy is quite grown up as she has had to take on a lot of pressure when he brother 'Frankie' died. She still has a little bit of child in her but she is at an age where she is growing up and having a mind of her own. She had the ability to add tension to those around her and she again was really convincing. The two sisters worked extremely well together and they were both a pleasure to watch.

* Paddy Considine

This is a man I recognized but I still don't know where I've seen him before. Past film performances have included '24 Hour Party People', 'Bouncer' and 'My Summer Of Love'. None of which I have seen so I can't give any comparison as to whether he was better in this film than any others. In this film he plays 'Johnny' the father of 'Ariel' and 'Christy' and the husband to 'Sarah'. His character doesn't feel anything but he comes across as a great father who is trying to do his best despite the circumstances.

To me Paddy was totally convincing in his role. He gave a powerful performance and made the role his own. His expressions and emotions just burst out onto the screen and it was really moving. He's an actor I will be looking out for in the future. There's only been one other actor that has moved me the way Paddy does and that ma is 'James Nesbitt'. I think they are both alike and both deliver excellent performances and take their roles very seriously. Paddy took his role beyond acting and he was amazing to watch.

* Samantha Morton

This woman is instantly recognizable to me as 'Agatha' from 'Minority Report'. She has such a unique, distinctive face and strong beauty. She has had a long career to date and has starred in films such as 'Eden', The Last Yellow' and as already mentioned the massive hit 'Minority Report'. Now out of the main cast members I'd say she was the weakest but that doesn't mean to say she wasn't great.

She played 'Sarah' the mother of 'Ariel' and 'Christy' and wife to 'Johnny'. She hardly ever looked happy and you could really feel the suffering she was going through after losing 'Frankie'. Her grief was obvious but at the same time she was strong for her children. I think a lot of people will be able to relate to her character and feel for her. She delivered a great performance and had good chemistry with Paddy so their relationship was believable. I think she was the best person for the role but I feel her character might have been able to be a bit more developed. Still a great performance though.

* Djimon Hounsou

The last person that deserves a huge mention is Djimon Hounsou. Now this is somebody I had never heard of or seen before knowingly, but he was absolutely fantastic in his role in this. He has had quite a good career actually so I am surprised I didn't recognize him. He has starred in 'Gladiator', 'Biker Boyz' and 'Lara Croft Tombraider: The Cradle Of Life', all top films which doesn't surprise me after watching him in this.

He plays Mateo, a mysterious, strong character who lives in the same block as the Irish family. Throughout the film I was slightly confused by some things it showed him do and the way he was but he was still amazing to watch. His eyes told everything he was feeling without the need for him to speak. His character was the most interesting to watch and it was great watching his character develop. His chemistry with the children was great and my favourite scenes are the ones with him and the children. There's only one word to fully describe his performance and that is 'amazing'.

* Quick Summary on Performances

As well as working superbly by themselves, all of the cast had great chemistry with each other. It was like they were actually the people they were playing. Each made the character his/her own and that made the performances even more believable. I think this is one of few films that has almost 100% top performances.

3) Production

The production like everything else in the film was great. I liked the way it was filmed like a diary. It made the film unique and made the characters more real. The sound was good and the way it was all put together was fantastic. I don't think there's anything that could have been improved on, everything the way it was, was perfect. Definitely no complaints from me.

4) Music

Music isn't something I'm usually particularly interested in when I'm watching a film but if it is included it seriously has the power to ruin a good moment or enhance it. In this case I feel it enhanced it. The music was appropriate and it lifted the mood at times. One part of the film nearly made me cry with happiness because of the music so to me that means they did a great job including it.


5) Enjoyability

I absolutely loved this film from beginning to end. The way it was shot made it extremely enjoyable and it had me close to tears in parts. It also made me have a warm fuzzy feeling sometimes too. The children were adorable and really great to watch. The storyline was great, cast performances were great, production was great and the music really went well and added extra emotion to the film. I haven't enjoyed a film this much in ages.

6) You will Like this Movie If

This is a drama movie and it is quite a sad story although I wouldn't be put off by that. The children really liven things up and bring out warm fuzzy moments that only children could. Obviously if you don't like children this isn't for you. If you are a macho man I would also give this one a miss as it almost had my guy in tears and that isn't good for all the guys that don't like showing their emotions. It's a film I'd recommend to all women though but because of the rating you should be over 15! There is one particular scene where you see quite a bit of sex. Now you don't see much nudity (meaning it doesn't show any particular rude bits) but the scene does last for around 2 minutes so if you are uncomfortable watching that it could be a problem. It isn't seedy in any way though so there's nothing to worry about there! It's not too heavy so it's great to watch practically anytime of the week and it's one that will leave you feeling all soppy afterwards.

7) The Director

Jim Sheridan has also directed 'The Boxer', 'In The Name Of The Father' and 'The Field'. I haven't seen any of those films so I can't compare this one to any of them. I can say however that I think he did really well on this one and I feel he should have been used on 'White Oleander' instead of 'Peter Kosminski'. I respect the work he has done with this film and feel he captured everything just right and created film that should have been bigger than what it was. He really deserves a lot of credit and I will be tempted to see other movies by him in the future.

8) DVD Extra's

I have seen some terrible Extra's in my time and so I'm not usually bothered about the extra's. However after really enjoying this I couldn't get enough and so I checked out what the extra's had to offer.

There are three sets of extra's including commentary by the director, deleted scenes with commentary if desired and a showing of how 'In America' was made. Here is a quick summary of each:

* Commentary By Director Jim Sheridan

Here the film starts as it normally would only Jims voice comes over talking about each scene. He gives information on what inspired it and why he used that particularly shot. I found this quite interesting but I only watched a little of it as I wasn't in the mood to watch the whole film again. When I do actually buy this film I will be watching it in full length because it was generally interesting.

* Deleted Scenes And Commentary

There are ten deleted scenes altogether and they were all quite good. As I watched them I saw some scenes that I would have liked to have seen in the film that would have perhaps given a little more explanation at the time as to what was happening, but then there were others that were definitely best left out. They were entertaining to watch and I'd watch them again despite them only being short clips.

* A Personal Journey: The Making Of 'In America'

Now this was the most interesting extra for me. It included interviews with the main cast members, the director and the co-writer. They all explained little bits about the film. In particular I liked the interview with Djimon Hounsou as he revealed a little more about his character which helped me understand more about him. As I said in the film his character is quite mysterious so it was nice to actually understand more about him. It really was good to watch and I'm glad I watched it.

I feel all in all the extra's were worth it. Obviously you have to like the film to want to see the extra's but if you are genuinely interested in it then you will learn a lot from watching them.

*** Film Stats and Full Cast List ***

Runtime: 105 minutes
Certified: 15
Genre: Drama

Paddy Considine ...Johnny
Samantha Morton ...Sarah
Sarah Bolger ...Christy
Emma Bolger ...Ariel
Neal Jones ...Immigration Officer #1
Randall Carlton ...Immigration Officer #2
Ciaran Cronin ...Frankie
Djimon Hounsou ...Mateo
Juan Carlos Hernández ...Papo
Nye Heron ...Blind Man
Jason Salkey ...Tony
Rene Millan ...Steve
Sara James ...Papo's Girlfriend
Bob Gallico ...Theatre Director
Jason Killalee ...Assistant Theatre Director
Chary O'Dea ...Mexican Woman with Child
Adrian Martinez ...Shopkeeper
Merrina Millsapp ...Marina
David Wike ...Barker
Guy Carleton ...Man at Fair
Elaine Grollman ...Nun on School Steps
Nick Dunning ...Gynaecologist
Michael Sean Tighe ...Frank
Jennifer Seifert ...Angela
Kathleen King ...Prize Giving Nun
Eilish Scanlon ...Nun Playing Piano
Tom Murphy ...Actor in Queue
Des Bishop ...Stockbroker in Taxi
Bernadette Quigley ...Hospital Administrator
Frank Wood ...Paediatrician
Molly Glynn ...Sarah Mateo
Jer O'Leary ...Thomas Bakewell
Regina Roe ...Administrator/Nurse
Tamla Clark ...Hospital Receptionist
Carmen Regan ...Doctor
Nisha K. Nayar ...Hospice Nurse
Rodrigo Pineda Sanchez ...Mexican Man Guitarist
Gabriela Quintero Lopez ...Mexican Woman Guitarist
Jessica Peters ...Voice

So to sum up I would definitely recommend this film. I thoroughly enjoyed it and will be buying it on Dvd as soon as I can. It's a really good feel-good film with a sad story. Brilliant cast performances too!

Aimee xxx

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