Golden Door [DVD]

It was disappointing to spend two hours only to address entry into the United States.

This movie is visually beautiful and moves at a slow poetic pace. It has humor, heart and depth. It had a profound effect on me. There are not many words but a lot of communication between the characters. It shows how hard it is to follow a dream and the huge gap between it and reality. How absurd and necessary romantic concepts are.. It was very well acted. So much happens without words how to know how it was directed so well. Best movie I have seen in a long while. Very human and beautiful. Grateful for it.

Golden Door was difficult to watch because my grandparents endured a similar ordeal; leaving Sicily by ship over perilous seas. My grandmother travelled with an infant son and would be greeted by her husband, who already established residence in Philly. They did not enter America by way of Ellis Island, instead they were processed at Marcus Hook, PA. I recall my grandmother telling me that her stormy voyage claimed a few lives with sea sickness. The movie became very personal and I had a much greater appreciation for the hardships all my grandparents (German-Hungarian and Sicilian) went through as immigrants.The movie's language was mostly Sicilian, not Italian. This gave the film great authenticity. And the acting was superb - the body language and facial features spoke more loudly than the words. I am still overwhelmed by the opening panoramic scene where father and son had climbed barefooted over rocks without a trace of blood.Why oh why is the final song of the soundtrack by Nina Simone? Nice song, but irrelevant or am I missing something of pertinence? Someone enlighten me.

Sure the movie moves a bit slowly, but it is supposed to. Getting to America is a slow process. Nobody even speaks for the first seven or eight minutes of the film. This movie relies heavily on its cinematography, which is breath-taking and beautifully executed. The story telling is markedly Italian with humorous superstitions that draw the viewer in, like the coins falling from the sky like rain, and the river of milk.The acting is quite good with Vincenzo Amato as the patriarch Salvatore, his sons are played by Filippo Pucillo as Peitro and Francesco Casisa as Angelo. Of course, I can't forget Aurora Quattrocchi as the fiesty grandmother Fortunata. (Fun fact: Amato, Pucillo, and Casisa all star in the earlier film Respiro in which they play the father and sons respectively)The soundtrack on this film is phenomenal and is currently in my cart. Unfortunately, it's an import which means it's a bit more expensive than most soundtracks, which is why it's still in my cart instead of in my CD player. But the mixture of a rousing score and Nina Simone works very well.This film is definitely worth owning.

"Golden Door" is a movie about a Sicilian family's immigration to America, "the land where milk flows in rivers". It is a look at the hardships they face in leaving their homes and traveling here, and the difficulties of actually being accepted by the authorities: illness and mental retardation, for example, could result in deportation.The movie is introduced by famed director Martin Scorsese. Of Sicilian descent, Scorsese praises this film for being true to what he remembers of his childhood and his family. It may have been personally moving to him, but this was a boring film. It is so slow moving as to be almost painful to watch. It is filmed in dark and dreary colors (probably to emphasize the hopelessness of the immigrants' lives) but it resulted in a movie that is exceedingly depressing.There are so many instances where the storyline makes no sense. For example, one main character is an attractive English redhead who captures every man's attention aboard the ship. All kinds of rumors circulate about her: Is she a princess? Is she a prostitute? Was she married to a nobleman? Is there some lover waiting for her? But her background and story are never revealed. All we know is she needs to marry someone, anyone, to get into the country. Even the immigration official tells her that she will be questioned why she, an Englishwoman, is traveling with Italian immigrants--highly unusual. But no questioning ever is shown.It is not a spoiler to tell you that at the end of the movie when the main character is faced with a harsh decision the movie suddenly ends. We never know what happens, leaving a sense of dissatisfaction among viewers.

The listing said “used - very good”. Actually, it’s like new - couldn’t be mor pleased with the condition. Both the box and disk are absolutely spotless. Thank you.

Three cheers for Martin Sorcesse. Not only does he direct some of America's finest films, he "discovers" films like "Golden Door" and brings them to America. I did not have the pleasure of watching this film in a movie theater (oh, how I wish I had: the cinematography is that stunning) but I did watch it on DVD, and its greatness still shines through. A mere plot description does not do this film justice. It is, at its most basic level, a story of coming to America from Italy-- certainly a worthy focus of a movie. But it goes so much beyond this theme: love story, homage to some of the great Italian films, a film about the mystery of human connection, even an adventure film. The cinematography, performances, the screenplay and stunning score work hand in hand to create an unforgetable cinematic experience. I tend to rate only books and movies that I truly love, so please forgive the superlatives -- but they are sincere.

I'm glad I bought this video. It gave me good insight to the journey my forefathers undertook.

Seule déception pour le fim les informations sur le cite ne disent pas que les dialogues VO sont en italien avec quelques phrases en anglais seulement.Livraison toujours aussi rapide et satisfaisante.Odile

Je suis professeur d'Anglais , j'etais decu de ne pas avoir la versions Anglaise , j'ai donc travailler le film avec mes eleves en Francais

this is the most ridiculous movie I have ever seen. dumb as it comes. do not waste your money on this. it really is not even worth your time to watch it. this was a colossal disappointment.

Bien reçu le produit et trés rapidement mais depuis un mois je me bats (mails, message sur répondeur, deux coups de fil) pour récuperer un reçu avec le prix du produit acheté afin de me le faire rembourser par mon employeur. Le sérieux se voit aussi dans l'après-vente. J'attends avec confiance ...