“News From Home” Film Review: The Newcomer’s Dilemma Essay Template For Faster Writing

Released in 1977, Chantal Akerman’s “News from Home” offers a vision of New York as experienced by a newcomer. The filmmaker used raw footage of New York locations in order to realize her documentary film. She narrated the film by herself, using letters that her mother sent her over the course of several years in order to personalize her work. The voice-over narration she employs however has no correspondence to the images, being used simply in order to personalize and enrich her view of the city. The film is not easy to watch, due to the distractions created by the superimposing of image, diegetic and non-diegetic sounds, which do not seem to correspond to each other. However, discovering New York from the perspective of the filmmaker is fascinating, while the incredibly personal letters that Akerman discloses create a contrasting impression of alienation and enthusiasm. While the protagonist seems to feel lonely in this foreign city, she also stubbornly embraces her newfound independence. This film is important because it renders the contradictory feelings of many young people who relocate in other countries, and who feel torn apart between feelings of alienation because of being outsiders in a new country, and enthusiasm regarding the possibilities that lie ahead.
Alienation is perhaps the most intense feeling that the film transmits. It is clear from the letters read by the narrator, that the unseen protagonist is a newcomer to New York, and that she is alone in this big city. The mother’s letters are filled with sadness and appeals for information and photos. Maintaining the connection with her daughter seems crucial for this unknown mother. The level of intimacy of these letters is particularly high because the mother speaks of different family members, and send news about their problems and successes. The protagonist’s separation from home seems even more radical because of the large and closely tied family she left behind. The voice-over narration superimposes with the diegetic sounds of the city. The cars passing by, the metro in movement and other urban noises compete with the mother’s words, often suppressing them entirely. It seems that the narration of the letters throughout the film is completely random, because it runs throughout several unrelated scenes at a time, and because there seems to be no relation between diegetic and non-diegetic sounds. Sometimes, the voice of the narrator is completely unintelligible due to the sounds that cover it. The obstruction of the non-diegetic sounds however is intentional and suggests that the protagonist herself often could not hear her mother’s pleas, due to the dynamic rhythm of her new life. Caught in New York’s fast pace, she may have ignored her mother’s need for reassurance.
The city footage also creates a powerful feeling of alienation. The person behind the camera looks at the city as an outsider, with curiosity but also with awkwardness. For example, when people in the tram look at the camera directly, intrigued by the filmmakers’ actions, the viewers feel that they are looked at suspiciously, much like new immigrants usually are. It is worth noting that none of the people she films addresses her directly. Apart from her mother, who speaks to her through the letters, there seems to be no communication in the filmmaker’s world. The words spoken by her mother are in French, an alien language which feels completely disconnected from the language spoken in America. There seems to be a language barrier between the protagonist and the people of New York City. In addition, the filmmakers’ silent exploration of the city, and her distant watching of the people suggests that she is still undecided whether she wants to become an insider or not.
However, this feeling is alienation is compensated by the discrete enthusiasm and curiosity of a young person who made a decision to move to a large American city and become entirely independent. The curiosity of the protagonist is felt in the way she sometimes stops to examine slices of American life, like the game of the boys who play basketball in the middle of the street. The long shots of the city represent the contemplating gaze of the newcomer who discovers this new place. Sometimes, the camera remains fixed on a point, and in other sequences, the images move fast, for example when Akerman films from a moving car. All these different techniques represent various ways in which the protagonist perceives the city. The images of the city seem to have been randomly put together. There is no narrative line, and no advancement in time and space. The transitions between cuts are very abrupt and often unexpected. For example, after a long shot from a moving car, where the diegetic sounds were suppressed, the filmmaker cuts to a noisy scene inside a tram. The sudden change from daytime to nighttime also surprises viewers and causes them to remain focused on the on the film. These changes may represent the surprises that the protagonist also faced after the arrival.
The complex response of the filmmaker to the challenge of leaving home and moving to a different country is beautifully portrayed in this challenging documentary. The film represents New York as newcomers could perceive it in the 1970s, vibrant, but distant and cold. New York did not embrace her immediately and she needed to let herself in. However, this was particularly difficult because she also felt tied to the family she left behind. The guilt she felt at abandoning her mother is suggested by the narration of the letters that she could constantly hear while exploring her city. Perhaps, this guilt reduced her enthusiasm and accentuated her feeling that she did not belong in New York. This is a common problem for all the people who leave their families behind when moving to another country. Akerman’s film offers a sensitive insight into the fragile emotional state of an immigrant, caught among feelings of alienation, homesickness, and hope for the future.