Fire at Sea (Fuocoammare)

— This is a fascinating and horrifying look at the existing European migrant/refugee crisis. It’s a series of Lampedusa images and interactions showing the ordinary life of the locals as well as that of refugees, ostensibly presented without judgement. There’s not a lot of dialogue and the cinematography is extraordinary, creating a beautiful and powerful but depressing film. Since some of the footage, particularly of the local islanders, is re-enactments, there’s the possibility of adjusting the truth not just through editing but by “writing” as well. This didn’t smudge the line between documentary and fiction as much as many, but it’s still worth mentioning. At the conclusion, it’s hard to push aside the images of refugees packed in boats and headed for Lampedusa with so many not surviving the journey and still having an uncertain future if they make it there. It also brings to mind another human rights film about the European immigration crisis that I liked, “Those Who Jump”, which went off in a much different direction but is also worth seeing.

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[2016. 114 min. Directed by Gianfranco Rosi. With Samuele Pucillo, Maria Costa, Pietro Bartolo, and Samuele Caruana.]
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/jun/12/fire-at-sea-review-migrant-crisis-documentary