Lamerica Movie Review

Gino (Enrico Lo Verso) and Fiore (Michele Placido) are Italian partners who dream up what they believe is a sure-fire scheme to make some money in Albania, now that its Communist system is out of power. They're not allowed to run a company because they're not Albanians, so they hustle an old man (Carmelo Di Mazzarelli as Spiro) to be the figurehead of a bogus shoe factory. Spiro is a longtime political prisoner, so he has no desire to remain in Albania an instant longer than necessary after his release, and he makes a quick escape to Italy with Gino in hot pursuit. The apolitical Gino, who only wants to make a quick buck with Fiore, is forced to learn more about political survival than he had planned when he finally catches up with Spiro. This film by Gianni Amelio (Open Doors, Stolen Children) won an Academy Award nomination as 1995's Best Foreign-Language Film, as well as an Independent Spirit Award nomination.

1995 120m/C IT Enrico Lo Verso, Michele Placido, Carmelo Di Mazzarelli, Piro Milkani; D: Gianni Amelio; W: Gianni Amelio, Andrea Porporati, Alessandro Sermoneta; C: Luca Bigazzi; M: Franco Piersanti. Nominations: Academy Award ‘95: Best Foreign-Language Film; Independent Spirit Awards ‘97: Best Foreign Film. VHS, Letterbox