In America (2003) tells a story of a young Irish family moving to New York. By watching the film you will have another point of view of Irish immigration in America during different times.

Task

Your task is to watch the film In America (You will get instructions for watching the film in the face-to-face tutorial at the beginning of the term) and answer a few questions about it in the course workspace in Moodle. The film is another story about leaving Ireland for America - this time in the 1980s. It might be a good idea to have a look at the questions before watching the film and take notes while watching the film. When answering the questions, please refer to specific scenes or lines from the movie to support your own arguments. Check the links below, if you want to know more about the film before or after watching it. For example, you can see the first 6 minutes of the film and then decide if you want to see the whole film.


The questions are:

1) Why did the family leave Ireland?
2) Describe the family's initial experiences in New York. Was it easy for them to adapt to their new life?
3) Were there any culture shocks encountered by the family?
4) Do you find similar themes or similar difficulties as those that the McCourt family had in Angela's Ashes?
5) The film is loosely based on the experiences of the director's family. Did you find the film realistic?
6) How are New York and America portrayed in the film? In a positive or negative light?
7) What happened to the family in the end? How does the story continue?

Links

In America

- the official website (a very good one!) for the film http://www2.foxsearchlight.com/inamerica/
- a review of the film http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0298845/
- a review of the film http://www.reelviews.net/movies/i/in_america.html
- a review of the film http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2003/10/27/in_america_2003_review.shtml
- a review of the film, where the critic was not impressed by the film http://www.film4.com/reviews/2003/in-america
- see the first 6 minutes of the film: http://www.apple.com/trailers/fox_searchlight/in_america/6high.html