A BETTER LIFE

A very sincere film about a problem that doesn't have a solution. It's about an illegal alien whose son was born in the U.S. and how the two cope. It's well done in many ways and the background of illegals in the U.S. gives the story a nice grounding in reality, but it's also a film that I wanted to like more than I did. The most interesting part of the plot is the middle third, which is based on Vittoria De Sica's The Bicycle Thief. Beyond that, I found the whole thing just a bit too familiar with somewhat formulaic character arcs and a plot that is pretty predictable with no real surprises. Oscar nominee Demian Bichir (of Weeds) goes against type and does a very credible job; director Chris Weitz also goes against type, but doesn't succeed as well.

INDISCRETION OF AN AMERICAN WIFE

Vittorio De Sica's 1953 attempt to wed an American approach of story telling to an Italian neo-realist background; neo-realism wins. Jennifer Jones spends more than an hour deciding whether to leave Rome or sleep with Montgomery Clift--most people would make that decision in five minutes. The soap opera at the core is perfectly serviceable; the real reason to see the film is the background. Filmed on location at Stazione Termini, the director fills the screen with extras, supporting characters and tiny subplots that are more fascinating than the central characters (especially a woman who has to be taken to the first aid department because she's pregnant). Richard Beymer of West Side Story makes one of his first appearances as Dick Beymer.