The Immigrant

Immigration reform isn’t a topic reserved for contemporary times, as demonstrated by The Immigrant, an evocative period piece in which a woman watches her American dream turn into a nightmare.

The story is set in the early 1920s, when Ewa (Marion Cotillard) arrives at Ellis Island from Poland with her sister (Angela Sarafyan), hoping to find their aunt and start a better life. But when her sister is quarantined because of an illness, Ewa is left to fend for herself.

Enter Bruno (Joaquin Phoenix), a smooth talker who seduces Ewa with promises of shelter and work, only to reveal his true motives of greed and emotional blackmail as he forces her into prostitution with other foreign girls at a burlesque house.

Ewa remains dependent on the duplicitous Bruno until the arrival of Orlando (Jeremy Renner), a magician who provides hope for her escape amid an eventual power struggle with Bruno, whose attachment to Ewa is deeper than he initially thought.

The first attempt at a historical drama for director James Gray (We Own the Night) reunites him with frequent collaborator Phoenix and places him back in his New York comfort zone.

Although the melodrama is too earnest, the deliberately paced script manages some powerful moments as it examines immigration from all angles with a critical eye. The re-creation of the period is vivid, with the use of sepia-tinted visuals by Gray and cinematographer Darius Khondji (Evita) lending texture to a time of post-war socioeconomic volatility.

Yet the primary focus remains on the characters, and particularly the dynamic between Ewa and Bruno. Cotillard (La Vie en Rose) balances strength and vulnerability in her bilingual performance, playing a character whose confidence grows as the two men develop a rivalry that further exposes their flaws. As she learns the ropes and plays the art of seduction to her advantage, hers becomes a tale of female empowerment.

The result isn’t as cumulatively provocative as it aspires to be, and it tends to remain emotionally distant in its more intimate scenes. However, The Immigrant stylishly captures its setting, and its more general depiction of Ewa’s haunting journey crosses not only geographical boundaries, but chronological and emotional ones, as well.

Rated R, 117 minutes.