Ellis (2015)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Robert DeNiro narrates and is featured in this short film, which is a tribute to Ellis Island. Basically we see DeNiro walking around and narrating his story of an immigrant and what happened to him on the island.

At just fifteen-minutes this is a pretty good short that works on many levels. Technically the film is extremely impressive and especially the cinematography by Andre Chemetoff. The camera-work is really some of the best that I can remember from any recent movie because it pulls you into the story but it also manages to make you float into the past where the narration is talking about.

DeNiro is also in fine form here as the narrator. Eric Roth's screenplay is direct with its words and there's no question that the film works as a tribute as well as having something to say about immigration. DeNiro manages to turn in a tender performance as he tells the story of one man, his dreams and his outcome.