Review of The Immigrant (2013) by David C — 16 May 2014

"Is it a sin to want to survive?" Ewa (played by the ravishing Marion Cotillard) asks her aunt, and that line alone brilliantly and coherently summarizes the concept of the American Dream and that with which we're left to work in such a self-reliant and helpless way of life that's led here. The Immigrant revisits the early twentieth century in the bowels of New York, vividly capturing the sheer difficulties those incoming immigrants were met with upon arrival on Ellis Island. These desperate souls sought to come to America in order to chase the one paramount dream of success that the country continually promised back in the day. Unfortunately, everything and everyone from the customs to the vastly disparate, unfamiliar environs tremendously frightened the foreigners to no end.

In this case, Ewa has arrived with her sister all the way from Poland, but they find serious trouble being let through due to her sister's illness and Ewa's "discourteous behavior" on the ship. Thankfully, a mysterious, fine-suited individual named Bruno (portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix) negotiates with the police officers, and with that, he sets off with Ewa to the mainland even though she's highly concerned for her powerless, detained sister who's forced into quarantine. And now, Ewa has officially entered the immensely intimidating, dog-eat-dog, merciless world in which she's introduced to prostitution and other equally depraved deeds for the sake of securing livelihood.

Ultimately what the film presents is an astonishingly beautiful and classical story that touches on all the timeless themes of forgiveness, moral turpitude, and environmental adaptation. Not to mention, it's exceptionally unpredictable, persistently keeping the audience either tense or stunned. As a further supplement, its unforgettably majestic musical score almost brings a fairytale-like aura to the narrative-the narrative being consumed by tragic beauty and even somewhat resembling the tale of Beauty and the Beast within the evolving relationship between Ewa and Bruno.

On that note-my oh my!-the picture boasts phenomenal performances across the board. Joaquin Phoenix, once again, is a tour de force, embodying a wholly different character as opposed to the role we saw him last in: Her. The fact of the matter is that he's undeniably one of our greatest actors who's capable of convincingly blending into completely dissimilar personalities; with this one, he's a very disturbed, morally ambiguous, brooding presence that enwraps this innocent, religious new immigrant with the sins and immorality of unforgiving capitalism. Later on, Jeremy Renner, personating a playful magician, fascinatingly intervenes in the compelling dynamic between Phoenix and Cotillard. By the way, honestly, I felt slightly underwhelmed by Marion Cotillard's performance after hearing an amplitude of praise as her occasional calmness to fairly shocking events throughout truly put me off.

Now, what I loved most about this cinematic marvel-1920's New York City magnificently reimagined with the most gorgeous cinematography, costume and set design up for display. It all creates that magical atmosphere which casts the viewers back into a profoundly visually-striking and indelible time period. Without the intention to give anything away, the film will eminently leave you with an elegiac shot of masterfully poetic contrast.

All things being considered, the narrative frankly can sometimes feel marginally contrived with the manner in which some of the characters just so happen to meet and are instantly forced into a developing relationship thereafter. The major characters all miraculously seem to have their eyes on Ewa. Simply said, some of the plot advancement can feel vaguely unbelievable.

At the end of the day, though, not only will the elegant story surely stay with me for the rest of the year (at least) but its breathtaking visuals will also be imprinted into my mind with its utterly aesthetic essence. The Immigrant-albeit its unfair placement in the middle of a blockbuster season-should not be disregarded; it's an elaborate period piece with continuously surprising plot development.