- Director : Matteo Garrone
- Actors : Seydou Sarr, Moustapha Fall
- Subtitles: : English
- Studio : Cohen Media Group
- Aspect Ratio : 1.85:1
- MPAA rating : NR (Not Rated)
- Country of Origin : Italy
- Number of discs : 1
- Media Format : Blu-ray
- Run time : 2 hours and 1 minute
- Release date : May 28, 2024
There’s no
question that immigration has been a hot-button political topic worldwide in
recent years, but director Matteo Garrone (Gomorrah) wisely takes a humanist
approach to the topic with his latest film, Io Capitano. Nobody likes
being preached to while watching movies, even those of us who appreciate more
than the simple escapism of Hollywood genre films. Instead, we like to be told
stories with characters we can connect with, and that is what Io Capitano
excels at above all else. The fact that the story Garrone is telling happens to
resemble the reality of many humans living on this planet today only adds to
the power of the storytelling.
The widespread relevance
of the topic could be why the film was an international co-production between
Italy, Belgium, and France. While the film needs a wide scope and filmed for
thirteen weeks in three different countries, the focus is surprisingly intimate
and tied to the experiences of a single character. Seydou (Seydou Sarr) is a Senegalese
teenage living in Dakar with plans to make the journey to Europe with his cousin
Moussa (Moustapha Fall). They depart in secret after lying to Seydou’s mother
about the plans and are warned by many of the dangers they will face. Even the
audience is unlikely to be prepared for the number of ways the immigrants are
exploited and abused.
Garrone has
proved himself capable of tackling real world social issues without losing
sight of the more formalistic capabilities of film, and he continues this signature
approach with Io Capitano. Although many of the scenes and the whole of
the narrative is grounded, inspired by the stories of actual immigrants who
made the same journey from Africa to Europe, there are also sequences of
fantasy utilized to depict the inner thoughts and visions of its protagonist.
Although I truly appreciated the commitment
by the filmmakers to tell this story in a way it has rarely been approached in
the past, I also could not help notice the similarities between Io Capitano
and Mediterranea (2015). Both are international co-productions with
protagonists who take the journey from Africa to Italy with lead actors praised
for their performances. The biggest difference between the two is Io
Capitano’s decision to focus entirely on the journey itself.
Io Capitano competed for the Golden Lion at the
80th Venice International Film Festival, where it won the Silver Lion for
Matteo Garrone's direction and the Marcello Mastroianni Award for Seydou Sarr's
performance. It also received Golden Globe nominations for Best Foreign
Language Film and an Academy Award nomination for Best International Feature
Film. Unfortunately, foreign films really must make an impact for audiences to
take notice in America, so this Blu-ray release may be the first time some are
able to watch Io Capitano.
The Blu-ray release comes with two
Q&As given after screenings of the film in Los Angeles. Both screenings and
the Q&A were attended by actors Seydou Sarr and Moustapha Fall, along with
a man named Mamadou Kouassi, whose own journey served as partial inspiration
for the narrative. Director Matteo Garrone is also at the second screening and
Q&A. The extras also have a theatrical trailer.
Entertainment Value:
7/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 8.5/10
Historical
Significance: 7/10
Special Features:
/10
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