"Lamerica" was directed by Gianni Amelio. He has more recent films which are not yet on DVD, such as "The Keys to the House" and "Stolen Children". His style has been compared to neo-realism, but he is very attentive and creative as he films, so he goes well outside the bounds of any conventional expectations. He avoids technical displays and edits including only elements that speed you on in the story.

Lamerica is about the inescapable inherent rules of humanity, in which we are connected to each other by iron bonds of compassion.

The story is about a journey into the interior and out again of Albania at a time of chaos, A young Italian, in training to be a crooked business man, finds himself deeper and deeper in trouble in a world he can't understand and deal with. He is seeking a retarded man who was selected to be the Albanian front man for their scam. As he goes forward he resists all human impulses of connectedness and compassion..and half the suspense is to see if he finally understands the hell he has made for himself and will then attain some measure of redemption. The other main character, the would-be front man, acted by a retired fisherman, whom the director met by chance, who gives an extraordinary performance, well beyond anything Tom Hanks did to get one of his Oscars.

In reality the director is addressing us, the prosperous developed world. It also shows that political insanity breeds unnecessary extreme poverty.

This film is made of many small details, which paint a picture of the human ability to survive, even to the point of breaking most contact with reality. There is a fantastic dance scene with a little girl, for example, imitating what she has seen on Italian TV.. And it warns us, if an Albanian translator is not going to go with you to the Ministry, you better turn around and run for your life. One of the last images is a trick performed by a beggar boy who actually has two normal legs..then you think back to the beginning and the translator, who splits because he knows something or worse has turned you in, and you realize these are no fools.

L'america is a great movie that gives a lot of emotions, especially to the albanian people for the changes that happened during that period.You had to be there to really understand what was going on.
Albania is a small country in the Balkan Peninsula with a bitter history through centuries.It has been invaded many times starting with the romans,turks,italians and germans.But all that didn't stop albanians to save their culture,traditions and the language which is the oldest of the Indo-Europian languages. Albanians are very good people,very generous and brave.
I am talking a little to much away from the movie, but as an albanian I feel the responsability to let whoever reads this review know: Albania is a small country with a great heart and time has steped on Her with no mercy.
FALEMINDERIT-in albanian means (THANK YOU) in english

"Lamerica" from director Gianni Amelio is a political film set in Albania. Albania has just emerged from years of communist rule, and two opportunistic Italians, Gino and Fiore come to Albania to set up a bogus shoe factory. Fiore has done this sort of thing before. Gino--the younger man--has not. In order to set up the factory, the wheels of Albanian bureaucracy need to be greased. The plan is that investors or grants will fund the so-called factory, and the two Italians will set up the bogus company, grab all the money and run. This seems like a fairly simple plan, and one that has worked well for Fiore previously.

The minute Gino and Fiore arrive in Albania, it is clear that they are in the midst of a highly unstable and volatile political situation. 100s of troops are in the ruined streets, and starving beggars hound the well-dressed, well-fed Italians. Thousands of Albanians are desperate to leave and will go to any lengths to join the crowds of refugees swarming onto every ship, train or bus heading for the border. Italian culture permeates the poverty-stricken country. Everywhere they go, the Italians trip upon elements of Italian culture in the most unlikely places. The starving Albanians are narcotized by Italian game shows, and Albanian parents will give away a child on the off chance that fame awaits in Italy. Gino seems doubtful that the plan can work, but Fiore is more confident.

Albanian law requires the selection of an Albanian as the chairman of the company. The Italians require someone as a figurehead only--someone with no relatives, and their search leads them to the squalor of a former "model labor camp." There, the Italians are introduced to a pathetic, filthy old man who is called Spiro Tozai. But Tozai is not quite what he seems.

When Tozai goes missing, Gino begins the hunt for his precious 'chairman'. Gino leaves the relative comfort and security of his hotel to search for Tozai. One by one, the layers that separate Gino from the Albanians are stripped away, and Gino finds himself as helpless and desperate as the average Albanian. Gino is not a sympathetic character at all. He has no time for the beggars who line the streets--he is simply out for himself. In contrast, Tozai--a man who has suffered years of deprivation in a labor camp, cares for his fellow men. Gino's complete degradation becomes his journey towards joining the human race.

There are only two professional actors in this film, and yet every performance was solid. Lamerica is a perfect film. I recommend it without reservations--displacedhuman

This award winning 1994 Italian film is sometimes hard to watch. The landscape is Albania in the early 90s, a country that had been first invaded by Mussolini and then kept subjugated by totalitarian rule until the recent breakup of communism. This leaves it open for two Italian racketeers to try to set up a bogus shoe factory. Problem is they need an Albanian to be chairman. And so they find an old man who they can call "chairman" and will sign all the proper papers.

Things get a little out of hand, when the old man, played by Carmelo DiMazzarelli, runs away. The younger racketeer, Enrico Lo Verson, goes out to look for him. What follows is a deeply moving drama set against the backdrop of the abject poverty in Albania. Here, almost everyone is a refugee, attempting to cross the Adriatic in a quest for a better life in Italy, which symbolically becomes "Lamerica", symbol of hope and freedom.

At the beginning of the film the young man is brash and arrogant. He has money and nice clothes and is quite willing to become part of the scheme. The old man has been a prisoner for 50 years and doesn't realize the passing of time, still thinking he is only 20. As the story develops, we find out he is not Albanian at all, but a WW2 deserter who yearns to return to Sicily to his wife and newborn son. The young man's goal, however, is to keep him in Albania.

But things happen. The young man's car gets stolen and he soon learns how little his money means in the countryside of Albania. For example, after walking for miles, they come to a café. The shopkeeper is clear. "Sorry, no water today. Today holiday. Maybe tomorrow." There isn't any food either. Just a television screen where dozens of men sit like zombies watching Italian TV.

The journey is long, and events worsen, but the relationship between the two men grows. It's all very subtle as we watch the old man gain in strength and wisdom and the young man gradually change his character. The acting is excellent, so excellent that I forgot they were actors. There's little action but yet every line had layers of meaning.

The poverty is disturbing. How could it ever have gotten this bad? But there's determination in every Albanian to strive for a better life. They do the best they can. And it sure opened my eyes. This is an important film. I'm glad I saw it. But I was left with a lingering sadness when it was over in spite of the fact that the ending was one of hope. This isn't a film for everyone. But those who want to be moved and are not afraid of the subject, I definitely recommend this film.

A very nice movie portraying what life was like in Albania following the fall of communism. This movie is well done and filmed entirely in Albania. The documentary style filming of the movie gives you a real upclose look at the lives of ordianry Albanian citizens struggling to make ends meet at a time of a collapsed economy. Though this film is in Italian language, all of the characters except the two leading characters are Albanian.
The characters for the most part comprise of a non-professional cast to give the viewer a look at the harsh reality of post-communist life. The movie is interesting and fascinating to watch because you get to see a little of what Albania looks like. It is important to remember that Albania was Europe's most backward communist society. For four decades this Balkan country was isolated from the rest of the world. Even now Albania is Europe's and one of the world's least known countries. This film is a treat in that it introduces a litte of what Albania was like and still is, even if it is harsh and haunting. Another highlight of the film is that in many scenes it is possible to hear the Albanian language being spoken. Though the Italian dialogue is all subtitled, the Albanian dialogue is not. But, never the less it is interesting to hear the Albanian dialogue spoken by ordinary Albanian citizens.
This film is moving and touches you at the end when you realize why this film is titled Lamerica. A ship with hundreds of people seeking a better life of opportunity in a land that is not their own. This is something that occurs throughout the globe everyday. Lamerica is a film for everybody to learn from and appreciate for what they have.