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August 17- August 24,2003 |
Dirty and not so Pretty Things
Bristish director Stephen Frears uncovers London's underbelly in illegal immigrant movie
By Angela Baldassarre
Originally Published: 2003-08-03
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Director Stephen Frears
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British director Stephen Frears has perhaps the most interesting career in movies considering the varied themes of his films. My Beautiful Laundrette, Sammy and Rosie Get Laid, Prick Up Your Ears, Dangerous Liaisons, The Snapper, Mary Reilly, Hi-Lo Country, High Fidelity, Liam and The Grifters (which earned him a best director Oscar nomination in 1990) share few traits other than a love for complex characters.
He's also established a reputation for discovering unique talent - or at least catching them early on. Actors he has helped make household names include Daniel Day-Lewis (My Beautiful Laundrette), Gary Oldman (Prick Up Your Ears), Uma Thurman (Dangerous Liaisons) and Jack Black (High Fidelity).
In his newest film, Dirty Pretty Things, Frears returns to modern-day London in a thriller about illegal immigrants trying their best to survive. Inspired by a true story, the film follows Okwe (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a doctor in his native Somalia who in England is reduced to working as a hotel clerk and taxi driver in order to make ends meet. One night, Okwe finds a human heart in the toilet of one of the hotel's rooms, leading him to discover that the hotel is the location of a nefarious black market. The movie also stars French actress Audrey Tatou (Amelie) as Senay, a Turkish immigrant who dreams of moving to New York; a difficult dream to make reality when she doesn't have a legal passport and must constantly change jobs in order to avoid detection by immigration officials.
Tandem talked to Stephen Frears, 62, when he was in Toronto.
Watching Dirty Pretty Things one hopes it's mostly fiction.
"Well, you'll find that it's worse than what you've portrayed. Whatever you've done and how you think it's actually terrible, you then discover something that's far worse."
What's harrowing is that the characters seem to have little choice in their actions, even though they're living in a first world country.
"They want to survive. That's what they have to do. You see, they want to get from a third world country into a first world country. That's the price. You want to come to Britain, you want a passport, this is the deal. Okwe comes from an area where all the gangsters are; for a passport they want this much money, this is what you offer them."
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