THE IMMIGRANT - A Review By Philip Josse

The immigrant is a 2013 film directed by James Gray and starring Marion Cotillard, Joaquin Phoenix and Jeremy Renner. The film tells of the hard life of a polish immigrant, arriving on Ellis Island in the 1920's with her sister. Upon arrival Ewa meets Bruno, played by Joaquin Phoenix, and is drawn into a web of lies, magic and prostitution.

The film features a talented and charismatic cast, Marion Cotillard is perfectly cast as the vulnerable and beautiful Ewa, who is caught up in world in which she is too young, and too innocent. Joaquin Phoenix plays Bruno, a troubled and damaged man who uses a combination of charm, money and lust to draw women in, and finally Jeremy Renner plays Orlando, a magician who offers Ewa an escape from her situation.

I wanted to like this film, i really tried, but The Immigrant has an uneven script and poor character development. The biggest problem with this film is that it is too damn attractive, the film wants to be gritty and real, and wants to present a realistic view of the hardships of being an immmigrant in 1920's New York, and Ewa towards the end of the film sees herself as a disgraced woman. The film never allows the audience to see Ewa in the way she sees herself, and thus we are confused by the image other characters have of her. Bruno is also a confused character, he is never as nasty as he really could be, and thus Ewa's fear of him appears irrational, the audience never really sees him as she does, and for me this is a big problem.

That said the film does look beautiful, Gray does a fantastic job of recreating 1920's New York, and the cinematography is lovely, the costumes are vibrant and tactile, and the characters feel real, however overall The Immigrant is too uneven, too long, and just too dower to bee a successful motion picture, however Marion Cotillard is effervescent as ever, and perfectly cast as the fragile Ewa. Rating: C

Ewa: I just want to be happy