lamerica:
anni rees - 2nd year French & Italian
Gianni Amelio’s film ‘Lamerica’, made in 1994, was made in response to, events which took place in 1991, following the collapse of Albania’s communist regime. With a narrative which sparks investigation into both Italy’s past and present treatment of migrants, Amelio calls into question the constructions of national identities and the treatment of the ‘other’. Such themes and concerns have modern resonance in relation to what many might seem Giorgia Meloni’s increasingly dehumanising treatment of immigrants.
Following the fall of communism in Albania, Gino and Fiore, played by Enrico Lo Verso and Michele Placido respectively, head to the politically unstable Albania as con men with the aim to establish a fake investment firm. In order to receive a grant from the Italian government, they randomly declare an elderly ex-prisoner of war named Spiro as their decoy CEO; however, when Spiro, played by Carmelo Di Mazzarelli, runs away, Gino is forced to follow him and so ensues an unforgiving journey through the destitute Albania. Throughout this period, Gino is exposed to the harsh realities and desperations of daily life, forcing him to question his morals and even his own identity as he is physically reduced to the same status as the Albanians, resulting in almost complete racial continuity. Throughout, Gino and Spiro are portrayed as victims of the physical and mental effects of cultural
which might normally propel a neorealist film. It is then with the closing frames that the audience is directly addressed and somewhat confronted for the first time by a montage of still frames which captures several individual faces staring directly into the camera. This intense ending truly captures and re-establishes the profound humanity of each migrant.