Le Havre (2011)

LE HAVRE  (2011)  ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢
    D: Aki Kaurismaki
    André Wilms, Kati Outinen, Blondin Miguel,
    Elina Salo, Evelyn Didi, Quoc Dung Nguyen
A young African, trying to get to London as a stowaway on a container ship, lands in the French port city of Le Havre, where an aging shoeshine man becomes his unlikely guardian angel. This is a fairy tale, and in a fairy tale, miracles can happen, so they do. Tragedies are averted, people go the extra mile to help each other out, and Kaurismaki's deadpan delivery prevents it from ever getting cute. It's nice when humanity comes out ahead, even if it's only in the movies.