Been there, done that, didn't take quite as long

Rating: 8/10 (12 September 2004)

I'm surprised to see this film scoring higher votes from a U.S. audience than an non-US audience, because parts of Viktor's experience are uncomfortably familiar to anyone who's ever been through U.S. immigration. The unfriendly interrogation followed by an unsmiling "Welcome to the United States", the determination of U.S. officialdom to stick to the letter of the law, the need to answer leading questions in a certain way ("Have you ever been a Nazi? Are you a drug dealer?" Yes, these questions are on the infamous light green form), and even the difficulty of figuring out how the public telephones work, all reminded me of my own experiences - and I speak the same language! (well, mostly :-)). So those people who criticised Spielberg for "not knowing where the film is going" are missing the point -- the true theme of this film, to me, is how outsiders see America, through the microcosm that is an airport terminal.
As for those people who criticised parts of the plot as being beyond belief, I have to agree -- I can't believe so many people slipped over on a wet stone floor in New York and didn't try to sue the airport (half :-))
[End spoilers]