Life Is Fare Film Difficulty Ranking: 2
Life is Fare is a Tigrinya/English feature film exploring three different experiences of the Eritrean diaspora living in the U.S. It uses different styles (drama, documentary, animation, fantasy) to construct a range of views on what it means to be Eritrean and living abroad. So, if you’re looking for a unique exploration of the immigrant experience in the U.S. Life is Fare is a movie to add to your watch-list.
From: U.S/Eritrea, North America Watch: IMDb, Watch for Free on Film's Website Next: Farewell Amor, Burial of Kojo, The Infiltrators
Life is Fare Breakdown
If you’re an immigrant living in America, you might have a few shared experiences with those shown in Life is Fare, especially if your family is from Eritrea. The film follows three different threads: a lonely man working as a taxi driver, a middle aged mother with her daughter in her mid-20’s, and a group of three young women. They’re all living in the San Francisco Bay Area, and all have roots in Eritrea. However, their experiences of being part of the Eritrean diaspora are all unique:
- The taxi driver seems to have recently arrived in the U.S. as he regularly dreams of people from his country. We follow him at work and through his everyday chores. His life is the only part of the movie that feels dramatized.
- The mother and daughter both feel more established in the U.S. The daughter is first generation, and fully American (she speaks English) and her mum still retains a lot of her cultural heritage (shown in the coffee ceremony and by not speaking English). The daughter (who is also the Director) questions her mother in a casual one on one interview. She explains it’s for her student movie, making it feel like the most meta segment of the movie.
- The trio of friends scenes, like the mother daughter interview, is conversational, unlike the scenes with the taxi driver. The characters debate their Eritrean identity and attachment to their roots. Their differing opinions on patriotism and nationalism creates a range of feelings on what it means to be Eritrean American.
Jumping between these three story-lines, Life is Fare builds a wider perspective of the Eritrean immigrant experience in the U.S. than it could if it just focused on dramatizing one story. As they’re all told differently too; one is a dreamy drama, another is a conversational drama, and the other a documentary interview which even employs a quick animated 101 of Eritrean history, it stands out from other immigrant movies. It feels fresh and unique even if the quality of the production and acting feels a bit raw.
What to Watch Next
If you’re after more movies about the African immigrant experience in the U.S. check out Farewell Amor, which features a reunited Angolan family in New York. Or if you’re simply looking for more immigrant movies, check out Los Lobos, I’m No Longer Here, and Minari. Los Lobos and Minari are drenched in melancholy as they chase the American Dream, whilst I’m No Longer Here depicts a fish out of water in the Big Apple.
Or if you’re after another African film that tells it’s stories interspersed with dreams, watch Burial of Kojo or When the Stars Meet the Sea.
Lastly, if you enjoyed the multi-layered narratives and styles of Life is Fare (crossing both drama, documentary, real and fictional), check out The Infiltrators. It’s a documentary-drama that documents and dramatizes two DREAMers as they infiltrate an immigrant detention center in Florida.
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