The film Letters from Alou uncovered one of the historical moments in Spain
The film Letters from Alou uncovered one of the historical moments in Spain where immigration became widespread at the end of the 1990s and early 2000s. Montxo Armendáriz was interested in setting a story of how illegal immigrants from West Africa sneaked into Spain. The story rotates around one immigrant from Senegal named Alou, who reached Spain and found that life was not the way he expected. He wrote letters to his parents, informing them about his new life in Spain. From the film, I noted life was quite difficult for black Africans who settled in Barcelona. Alou faced a lot of exploitation, marginalization, and discrimination because of his race. I noted the main themes in the film were discrimination and racism. Alou connects with other illegals, and we saw his effort to get a job in Barcelona did not bear fruits. Life became quite difficult for Alou as he interacts with the natives. The Spaniards discriminated against the Africans in terms of employment and the use of public facilities. Racial hostility became quite widespread to the extent of police erasing the Africans. Before Alou was caught and sent to Senegal, he had started an affair with a Spaniard woman. He had tried to find a way to belong to foreign shores so that he can make his woman happy. Another theme of romance emerged, which showed a relationship between two different races. I liked the film because it reflected how social issues like immigration tend to affect modern societies.
