I saw this film when it first came out and fell in love with it.
Having spent some time in Switzerland, I knew the truth of the rejection of foreign workers, and I saw the places where they lived in great poverty, in the midst of rich, glittering inter- national crowds. The bigotry was (and still is to a great
extent) painfully true.
This is one of those marvelous films that makes one cry and laugh, almost simultaneously. As many have said before, it is Chaplinesque.
I especially appreciated hearing the various languages actually spoken by the characters - German, Italian, Greek, Turkish. The subtitles help the viewer very well indeed, but the sound of the actual languages enhances the verisimilitude of the story.
Just recently I have, after more than 20 years of searching, discovered that this film is on video tape, and I can't wait to acquire it - at long last!
Having spent some time in Switzerland, I knew the truth of the rejection of foreign workers, and I saw the places where they lived in great poverty, in the midst of rich, glittering inter- national crowds. The bigotry was (and still is to a great
extent) painfully true.
This is one of those marvelous films that makes one cry and laugh, almost simultaneously. As many have said before, it is Chaplinesque.
I especially appreciated hearing the various languages actually spoken by the characters - German, Italian, Greek, Turkish. The subtitles help the viewer very well indeed, but the sound of the actual languages enhances the verisimilitude of the story.
Just recently I have, after more than 20 years of searching, discovered that this film is on video tape, and I can't wait to acquire it - at long last!