nightlydvdreviewWelcome
March 30th 2010 08:18
Vincent Lindon guiding Bilal's swim across the English Channel
There’s an inherent irony in the title of French director Philippe Lioret’s latest impressive effort Welcome. It’s about the grim struggle of illegal immigrants in Europe, the plight of their experience, and how they are anything but welcome.
Kurdish teenage boy Bilal has been travelling illegally across Europe for nearly three months. He hopes to make it to England, but is stopped in Calais on the northern coast of France. Heavy surveillance by the French authorities prompts him to seek the help of Simon, a middle-aged swimming instructor bent on winning back his ex-wife.
The pair forms an unlikely but mutually beneficial team. Simon fathers Bilal, showing affection whilst retaining a natural sternness. He hides the boy in his apartment home. Lioret has controversially asserted that this story strongly resembles earlier times when Jews were hidden from the Nazis, sparking intense political debate throughout France.
Vincent Lindon is splendid in the role of Simon, a hurt man whose harsh exterior conceals an inner world of torment. Bilal is played by newcomer Firat Ayverdi, who gives a touching and wholly believable performance. Growing more desperate to reach England and his waiting girlfriend, he endeavours to swim the English Channel under the guidance of Simon.
It’s a remarkable story which feels as though you might have once read it on a world news page without processing it adequately. Lioret reveals a masterful vision, particularly with the breathtaking scenes of Bilal’s ultimate swim. The film’s ending confirms the uncompromisingly bleak outlook of Lioret, which is bitterly refreshing in an industry that usually insists on tying a pretty bow on even the most confronting truths.
4 STARS
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