I just finished watching Un Pasaje de Ida and I have mixed feelings. I will give Agliberto Melendez the credit of starting the independent film industry (even though many years passed before the next Dominican movie was made). I am sure it wasn't easy for him to collect funds and assemble trust from scratch. Un Pasaje de Ida is in fact the first Dominican moviemade by Dominicans and acted by Dominicans. And it was a well-intentioned attempt.
The writers (Adelso Cass, Danilo Taveras) chose a poignant theme. Illegal immigration sinks deep into Dominican skin. Like the movie points out, no one wants to leave their families, but unemployment is high and the economy is low. The writers make an effort to confront an issue that is largely ignored by the public sphere. In a country where Los Licenciados reap all the benefits, the poor are forced to find illegal means to make a living.
In addition (spoiler alert), it's terrible that the workers of the ship would rather kill 30 men before risking their contraband business. The protagonist was right; you shouldn't fear the ocean, but rather people who would do anything to get what they want. These men had to be extremely cold blooded disregard human lives like they did. It is even more horrendous that the men responsible have not been convicted for their crimes.
However, the script has some serious holes at parts. The passing of time from the beginning sequence to the end sequence is awkward. I wasn't sure if the incident in which the man that was chased by the guards happened a day before the next trip or a couple of weeks. The guards mentioned that it happened the night before, but it seemed like it took the protagonist a couple of weeks to get the $2000 pesos necessary for the trip. Was all the building action a flash-back? It wasn't clear. Talking about building action, the climax lost a lot of force given that it was obvious that the men in the tank would suffocate. I mean, I the movie would not have been based on a true story unless some tragic occurred. In that case, Melendez should have focused less on that final scene and more on the surrounding issues. Tension and suspense is created by a doubt of what might happen. There was little doubt, at least in my eyes. Subsequently, the second half of the movie was slow and tedious. Part of the problem could have been fixed through more effective editing; however, an alternate story to cut-to would have also kept the story interesting.
That said, I think the ending alludes to a bigger and disappointing reality. The poor (the victims) are pushed in the police cars for attempting to travel illegally, while the real criminals do not face any penalties. Law in this country only favors those who are able to pay of their problems. And then, the cycle is repeated when you see the frozen shot of the latter tossed over the side of the ship.
All considered, hopefully more filmmakers will follow the steps of Agliberto. This is a movie that values content over style, unlike many of the TV-imitation movies that are released today.
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