.: Roberts' Reviews - Movie Reviews :.

I have to admit something right off the bat. I have always been a fan of Jim Sheridan. With only four films to his directing credit, his movies have been memorable and award winning. My Left Foot, In the Name of the Father, The Field and The Boxer are all crafted from Sheridan's writing and direction and all contain Irishman struggling under extraordinary circumstances.

Enter Sheridan's latest, and possibly best, film, In America . In America stars Samantha Morton and Paddy Considine as Sarah and Johnny, two Irish immigrants who, after the tragic death of their son, land in Manhattan with their two children Christy and Ariel (played by Sarah & Emma Bolger), in hopes of capturing the American dream. Securing the only residence they can, the family moves into a drug infested apartment complex and begin to build a new life.

But the American dream does not come easy for those who start with nothing. Sarah takes a job at a local ice cream parlor, and Johnny resorts to driving a cab while visiting various acting auditions for the New York theatre. With money being one of the central challenges, we watch as the family struggles to pay hospital bills and has to make their own costumes for a school Halloween party.

It is Halloween that brings the family some eventual luck as the children go door to door trick or treating and happen upon the apartment of Mateo (played wonderfully by Djimon Hounsou). Mateo is an artist that is suffering from AIDS, and he befriends they family from upstairs and offers them a love that has been missing since the death of their child.

The movie's final chapter is one of great power and emotion. A central character dies while another is born, and the connection between the two circumstances seems supernaturally magical. By the time Johnny sheds tears for the first time since the death of Frankie, we are engrossed in a tragic and uplifting story that feels as close as the people next door.

In America stands out as one of the best films of 2003 due largely in large part to Jim Sheridan's simplistic filmmaking style. Sheridan takes non-recognizable, average looking actors, and lets them evolve and peel off layers of their characters within the confines of a heartwarming and loving script. Infused are the emotional attachments we have with the characters as a result. A scene at the fair where Johnny ties to win an E.T. doll for his youngest daughter, results in the family fronting the entire months rent money ($200+). With no musical score to over exaggerate the moment, Sheridan's pulls off this year's most intense moment that involves nothing more than a tennis ball and a well-crafted hole in the wall.

lso refreshing is Sheridan's depiction of the Irish immigrant family. Irish are the most routinely misrepresented ethic group on film, but In America does not resort to such stereotypes. The movie contains no excessive drinking or public drunkenness, there is no coarse language, and there are no references to the IRA or strong religious affiliations. All the above make for a true heartwarming and heartbreaking story of a family's struggle to survive and build anew. A-