Cannes Review: Jonas Carpignano's Topical, Intelligent, Empathetic 'Mediterranea'

An authentic, understated debut jabbed with urgency by the acute timeliness of its subject matter, Jonas Carpignano's "Mediterranea" is a compelling slice of social-issues cinema that makes very few compromises until the slight letdown of a mid-air ending. For the most part an assured film, confident in both the drama and the truth of the scenario it observes, this ground-level view of the immigrant experience feels both pinpoint specific and all too representative of the obstacles and attitudes that face so many illegals, in so many parts of the world. Informed by a kind of observational humanism, Carpignano neither sanctifies his characters nor simplifies their situations. In fact, the filmmaker's eye is of the respectful, intelligent and well-informed outsider — an embedded observer, rather than a participant — but just as he clearly cares a great deal about the issues the film raises, he seems to have faith that the audience will care too, not through manipulation, but...