January 8, 2004 -- “In America” is a story about a family living with the deep sorrow of a dead child. It is also the story of a family trying to make a home for themselves in a new city in a new country. It is a struggle on both fronts. What they need is a little magic and some new friends to help them reach their goals.

The story, told though the eyes of children, is a semi-autobiographical script about writer-director Jim Sheridan's (“The Boxer,” “In the Name of the Father”) family and their struggles to make it in America. Jim (played by Paddy Considine of “24-Hour Party People”) struggles to find an acting job in New York (is there any tougher job to get?). Both he and his wife, Sarah (played by Samantha Morton of “Minority Report”), struggle to get past the tragic death of their infant son. Moving into a run-down apartment, they fear Mateo, the large, angry screaming man on the floor below them (Djimon Hounsou of “Gladiator”) and they miss Ireland.

The Sheridan's two young girls, however, fear no one. Every day is an adventure for them. They make friends with the screaming man downstairs, who turns out to be a gentle giant. The children, Christy and Ariel (played by sisters Sarah and Emma Bolger, respectively) are very effective in the film. Christy, the older of the two is surprisingly grown up for her age. She is the one who dispenses her magic wishes to fix things in the story. She also gives a shockingly adult speech near the end of the film where she, essentially tells her father to grow up. In this story, Christy is the adult and the parents are like children in some ways. This odd band of characters forms a very unlikely extended family and they heal each other. This bittersweet story exudes both pain and happiness. Part of the pain is caused by the family's financial hardship and part of it is caused by the strain of worry about Sarah's high-risk pregnancy. Jim, especially, is emotionally crippled because he cannot get over the grief of losing his son. Sarah tells him in one scene one reason he can't get an acting job is because he can't feel anything anymore.

There are great performances by all, especially Considine and Morton. Djimon Hounsou turns in yet another quality performance in this film. This film has some of the best acting in it I've seen in any film in 2003, and I've seen most of the year's best films. Considine has a particularly intense dramatic scene with Hounsou. Morton has been nominated for awards by a number of critics groups for her performance in this film. Sheridan's real life daughters, Naomi and Kirsten, helped write the screenplay (both were in their 20s when they co-wrote the script, and are both writer-directors in their own rights). This is a film of very intense emotions, of both heart-rending sorrow and light comedy. At the end, there are likely to be few dry eyes in the house. There is also a sense of magic and wonder about it. This is one of the 10 best films of 2003. It rates an A.

Click here for links to places to buy or rent this movie in video and/or DVD format, or to buy the soundtrack, posters, books, even used videos, games, electronics and lots of other stuff. I suggest you shop at least two of these places before buying anything. Prices seem to vary continuously. For more information on this film, click on this link to The Internet Movie Database. Type in the name of the movie in the search box and press enter. You will be able to find background information on the film, the actors, and links to much more information.

Copyright © 2004 Robert Roten. All rights reserved.
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