Immigration is acontroversial issue in the European Union as it is in the United States. The Other Europe is film that brings to bear many of the issues being faced by peoples across from the Atlantic Ocean. This film proposes that immigrants in general receive mixed messages, on the one hand the official rhetoric refuses them legal entry on the other, once they arrive at their destination there are plenty of jobs left unfulfilled by the local citizenry.
Babel, however represents a different aspect of human interaction than that of immigration. This film delves into a probing view of the effects of globalization. In addition, it cuts across national boundaries and continents as it moves from The United States, Morocco, Mexico and Japan in a story line that is intertwined by the random acts of a young boy.
Please comment on the intersection between the two films and the effects that images produce on the viewer. Furthermore, in class we discussed many aspects of these films in relation to Adams. Please feel free to comment on this element of our discussions.
The films intersection was very clear in reference to the Mexican housekeeper. She received the identical mixed messages that the families in "The Other Europe" received. She is told that she is a necessary part of the family, trusted to stay with the main couple's children while they gallivant around the world. However the authorities, more than willing to allow her to stay when she made no waves through her to the wolves when caught in a set of unfortunate situations. Likewise the families in Europe are subject to arrest and deportment with no right to their own property if similar events went that way.
ReplyDeleteEconomically needed and legally excluded is a set of unsustainable circumstances that undermine any relationship, especially those so bare and stretched out as is due to migration.
In "Babel" US authorities protected American interests while giving little or no care to non-citizens. Moroccan authorities however, show a near total lack of care for their own people in favor of Americans. This does not seem to be an example of everyone loves Americans but more a response like that in the very different film "Idiocracy." "I like money." It seems both sides are less worried about freedom or rights and more concerned with the bottom line. Terrorism in Morocco means significantly reduced tourism and less national income. In a destitute third world nation this is of huge concern. Illegal immigration in both Europe and the US probably means low paying jobs that send a majority of the money overseas to a home country. This is a drain many high level officials see as dangerous while in reality the means to stop the illegals probably costs more than is lost by the combined menial paychecks .
In the end the opposition and support of immigration and tourism actually ask the same, who makes money off the interaction?
Everybody wants something to better his or her lives. In Babel the Moroccan family bought the gun to better protect their heard, therefore enhancing their livelihood. The nanny from Mexico moved to the US for work and to make a better living. The American couple are traveling to work on their relationship. In The Other Europe all of the immigrants were moving for work for an opportunity to make money and change their lives for the better. A common cause of immigration is people taking action to improve their lives.
ReplyDeleteBoth movies also demonstrate how we do really live in a global community. In Babel it is shown through the journey of the gun and how by one mans gift led to affecting people all over the world. In The Other Europe it shows how people have migrated for work and are intertwined and developed lives in a different county than their own. Immigrants do receive mixed messages because on one hand the country wants them there because they are willing to work for less and in harsher conditions in jobs that the general public don’t want, or think they are above doing. On the other hand immigration is always a topic of complaint. People saying they steal jobs and send all the money they earn back home feeding their economy or they come to whichever country to reap the benefits of health care ect. These are not entirely true and often misunderstood. Immigration on a whole is a sticky issue. The images in both films create sympathy for the situation by showing another side of the story. At the end of Babel you feel terrible for what is happening to the nanny and in The Other Europe the reenactments pulls on your heart strings seeing families being separated, the men who died cockler fishing and conditions the agriculture men in Spa
One thing I found to be interesting in Babel was just the different ways that people were treated. The Americans in Morocco were able to have a helicopter airlift the woman to the hospital and contact their embassy, however the boys who shot the gun and the man who gave them the gun were treated brutally by the police mainly because it was an American tourist who was injured. The amount of press coverage the shooting got was incredible, there is even a scene where the girl is in Japan watching the news and a coverage story about Morocco comes on the television.
ReplyDeleteI think a big thing to take away from both movies is just the issues we have in our global community. I think a lot of the time Americans believe that the immigration issue is something that only we deal with, however it is a major issue for everyone. And not only is it a current issue facing our world, but it is something that countries have been dealing with forever.
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ReplyDeleteThe intersection between the two movies showcases the struggles and sacrifices that people have to endure in order to provide the best for them and their families. It is very evident in both of these films what been said that the political ideology and the economic circumstances being contradictory and confusing but in some ways beneficial to the immigrant and the citizens of that country. The political ideology does not want the immigrants or migrants in the country and sees it as a negative while the economic circumstances of the country need the low-skilled and low wage labor that the immigrants can provide.
ReplyDeleteThe intersection between both films is easily portrayed and viewed by the audience. I think immigrants are receiving mixed messages. The immigrants in both films are doing their best to provide for themselves and their families while overcoming various obstacles as they live in the home countries or in other countries. They are needed to work in low paying jobs, such as the nanny in Babel, and others don't hesitate to hire them. Yet there is much discussion on immigration how some think that these people will only take away the jobs that there are in an already struggling economy, yet those jobs are taken by those that want to work, and most of the time, it's not the citizens of that country. It can be economically helpful to the hosting country. They receive the mixed message of not being wanted in the country, yet they are at the same time because they are needed for work in certain areas. I think ultimately these films show that the actions of these countries are always impacting one another. We are in a global community in which one thing that happens in one country can affect the other, as we have seen in Babel with the selling of the gun to a man in another county and all of the mishaps leading after that. It is very heart wrenching to see the story of the nanny and the children. She looks out for the good of the children by doing her job, and with one decision, everything changes.
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ReplyDeleteThis is kind of off the beaten path, but I feel the want to discuss it. I am aware of immigration, and of the political issues surrounding it. I know there there is much grief when being an immigrant, as well as being a person who thinks they are being threatened and are (in whatever way) trying to protect themselves and their families. But what I wasn't aware of until this semester, and really looking more closely at it, how much our culture is derived from the mixed nationalities. ( Is that what it is? Race? Ethnicity? Peoples from other countries, I dunno what to call it.) When we first got together in our groups, I learned that I was the only person whose first language was English.I guess it surprised me, because even though there was a difference in accents and even skin color, I didn't really notice it. Like, we are all just students and girls and dancers, and educated, and pretty and...whatever else we are. Second to that, was where we are from. I am intrigued by my 'realization' because it shows that in many ways we have become a country that does welcome everyone. It wasn't even remotely odd to us that we were from such separated back grounds. It has just become life. -- I apologize if this seems silly or obvious. Personally, I had never connected the different people at U of I to immigration. -- Now I have. :)
ReplyDelete"The Other Europe" was a different view on migration and or immigration into different places based on the workers position. This would involve getting jobs and staying in a country illegally, but with hopes to soon become legal. "Babel" on the other hand is different because it shows the relationship between people around the world and it shows how we are all connected in some shape way or form. In a way I thought that the first movie was more effective for the class because it actually talks about what we are learning and in "Babel" it is a more hollywood theatre point of view, and I personally do not think that the movies relate with each other necessarily.
ReplyDeleteIt is funny to see the different interactions and the domino effects one incident can cause. In a way we can compare the movie "Babel" with WWI. What had sparked WWI was because of an assassination, and all the alliances made if one person would attack another. This compares to how in "Babel" one incident changes and influenced the lives of people around the world and connected then in one way or another. There is always one little thing that can spark interest into other people. As an example from "Greasers and Gringos" England and Spain were very competitive and always try to outwit the other. So in relation there are always consequences to the actions we do, whether that being good or bad.
ReplyDeleteBoth of the films, in one way or another are tied together. May it be family love or immigration, we learn a lot from both of these films. Family love is seen in both of these films because in both films no matter where you are, there is family always waiting for you. Immigration plays an important part in both of these films because we get to see that no matter where in the world you are there are always people from other countries that just want to work to make a better life for themselves or for their family. In Babel, we see the nanny that even if the children she cares for aren’t her own children; she cares for them as if they were. Also, in The Other Europe we see how families are separated but how they long to see one another. Immigration is common all around the world because of need for a job and money, and as people start leaving their families to do better for themselves and others family love is around the whole world.
ReplyDeleteBoth films intersect each other to raise some kind of awareness with the existing issue of immigration and the way you are treated by your identity. On one side we see the struggles of immigrants seeking a better life and on another side we see the differences that sets us apart within society. Its a tension born out of misunderstanding; a tension rooted in misconceptions; and a tension fueled by a misguided interpretation of each others' values. Not only this, but stereotypes that are further reinforced by the media. The mindset of differences shapes our society, government, country, etc. to act differently. Things that set us apart from one another anywhere you go in the world, which creates "acceptance" as an endangered species. Even though there were many themes to walk away from both films I feel like I walked away with culture being a currency with which you barter with.
ReplyDelete'The Other Europe' film focuses on penetrating the political and economical components of the immigration puzzle piece that makes up the Europe we know today. There are many devastation realities when we see the limitations of being an immigrant. Babel is a representation of how every life on this planet can be strangely intertwined, sometimes with almost tragic outcomes. The films are vastly different in how the general meanings are portrayed, however, the undertones echo one another. The strong bonds of family strung together with tragedy and chance really hit home with the viewers. It makes one think of what they might do in the various situations. Altogether, the films paint Europe as perhaps a frightening place to be when faced with realities of humanity.
ReplyDeleteI feel that much of what it is important to say about the intersection of the films has been said already, in a multitude of intelligent manners. What I've enjoyed reading is our class's perspectives on how these movies have affected our lives. It brings home that like many Chinese, Latin American, European immigrants, everyone is trying to create a home for themselves where they can prosper and be happy. In Babel, the Japanese girl was comfortable speaking with her deaf-mute friends, but had trouble carving out a niche for herself in regular society where people would accept and appreciate her. Everyone attempts to do this every day, but the difficulties of doing so are compounded exponentially when we place ourselves in the midst of a culture that we do not understand or that does not understand us. Today I met a girl who moved here from Korea to study in the United States, and despite how happy I could tell she was about this adventure of hers, it was impossible not to be aware of how difficult a decision it had been to completely uproot herself and move halfway around the world.
ReplyDeleteThe idea that a young person from halfway around the world would choose the come to the UI of all places and randomly make friends with me of all people really emphasises the fact that we are an incredibly interconnected globe, and that if these instances affect a social network of substantial size, then they must also affect other networks such as economic and political arenas. To be very hippy... "We are all connected, dude."
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ReplyDeleteI agree with Kate in that many of the important topics these films raise have already been discussed. Regardless, I'd like to underscore what she touched on, that most simple, core similarity between both films, a central component of our lives, and both a cause and result of immigration: the profound connectivity binding the people of this world together. I believe that the film "The Other Europe" actually more successfully (albeit less saliently) portrayed this concept than "Babel." In "Babel," the connections spanning cultures and countries are surprising and prominent but also amazingly coincidental. There are so many more connections between countries and people that are not the mere consequences of events as random as safaris and tours but the results of stable events such as immigration, be it temporary immigration or long term immigration. For this reason, I think "The Other Europe" did a better job of emphasizing the reality of the connections between peoples and nations. It highlighted the political ramifications, the familial bonds, and the difficulties of integration as well as the basic effects of having been in a different country that "Babel"'s story revolved around. In the end, however, both films were undeniably centered in the undeniable connection between the world's people, a connection continually increasing with new technology and globalization.
ReplyDeleteBoth of these films feature excellent images of the relationships between nations, as well as people. In both films, it is evident that the relative power of individuals is largely dependent upon the economic circumstances within their countries of origin.
ReplyDeleteIn our current world-system, the peripheral nations of the world generally provide natural resources to the core nations. In the films, the natural resource that is human capital is paramount. Peripheral nations provide largely unskilled labor to the core, in exchange for remittances to the periphery. Individual immigrants see economic opportunity for themselves and their families within the rich nations, and are drawn their as a result.
Affluence and poverty are on display in explicit contrasting terms in "Babel." The Morrocan family lives in a dwelling made of mud and stones, while the Japanese hunter lives in a giant, gleaming high-rise. The American children play organized soccer, while the Mexican children play in the dust.
In "The Other Europe," the poverty of migrant laborers is also clear. The men in Spain live in, according to Western standards, appalling conditions. Poverty and wealth are contrasted in these films, through the medium of images. Poverty and wealth need not be explicitly stated, for the imagery of the films does this for us.