Crossing Over is a multi-character canvas about immigrants of different nationalities struggling to achieve legal status in Los Angeles. The film deals with the border, document fraud, the asylum and green card process, work-site enforcement, naturalization, the office of counter terrorism and the clash of cultures. Written by

Plot Synopsis:
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After immigrant Mireya Sanchez is deported, officer Max Brogan takes care of her little son, and brings him to the boy's grandparents in Mexico. Later the woman is found dead near the border. Brogan returns to the grandparents to tell them the bad news.

Cole Frankel, a corrupt immigration officer, makes a deal with Australian immigrant Claire Shepard: he can have unlimited sex with her for two months, then she gets a green card. In the course of the two months he separates from his wife and wants to make the relationship with Shepard one of love, but she declines. He exempts her from completing the two months and arranges the green card. However, authorities find out and arrest him and Shepard is deported. His wife Denise Frankel adopts a little girl from Nigeria, who has already been in the detention center several years.

Brogan has an Iranian colleague, Hamid Baraheri. Hamid's family disapproves of his sister having sex with a married man. Encouraged by his father his brother plans to beat them up, but he ends up killing them, and is arrested.

South Korean teenager Yong Kim, who is about to be naturalized, reluctantly participates in a robbery with four others. Hamid kills the four in a shootout but lets him go. He lies to the authorities that there were only four robbers.

Gavin Kossef, a young British immigrant, pretends to be a religious Jew, to get a job at a Jewish school, which allows him to stay in the U.S. In a test where he has to demonstrate his familiarity with the Jewish religion he does not perform properly, but a rabbi asked to assess it approves it, so that the immigrant passes the test. After the test, in private, the rabbi requires from the immigrant to take lessons from him to eliminate the deficiencies in his knowledge.

Taslima Jahangir, a 15-year-old girl from Bangladesh, presents a paper at school promoting that people should try to understand the 9/11 hijackers. The school principal reports this to authorities. She is not charged for this, but it turns out that her parents and she are illegally in the U.S. One parent of choice can stay with the girl's two younger siblings, who are U.S. citizens because they were born in the U.S., the girl has to leave with the other parent to Bangladesh, even though she has lived there only until she was three. She leaves with her mother, and cannot even say goodbye to her father.

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yogi-14 from United States
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This ensemble multi-ethnic cast turns in solid performances in this formulaic treatment of the everyday dramas faced by the hard working folks at Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Mexican, Chinese, Palestinian, Australian and Persian plots carom off each other like Olympic Billiards as Harrison Ford, (whose obviously impending retirement is thankfully never mentioned), his heart bleeding from frame one to the credits, leads a solitary existence in an apartment at what has to be the Alimony Arms Hotel. There is no attempt to patch over the Crash/Babel formula; the film embraces it and comes up with some fine set pieces like a gripping intervention (Cliff Curtis and Justin Chon) during a convenience store robbery/shootout. The aerial views of L.A. will make natives want to freeze-frame future DVDs to ID where we are. The climax (NO SPOILER) is played against an attenuated rendering of the National Anthem and packs a punch. Unfortunately, there has to be another five minutes of Tying Up Loose Ends. Does it sound like I didn't like this much? On the contrary, it was 113 minutes well spent and shouldn't have been relegated to the Purgatory of February. April, maybe?

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DICK STEEL from Singapore
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Like Crash, Fast Food Nation and Babel before it, Crossing Over consists of multiple story lines bound together by a common theme examined, sometimes with just a few characters straddling across the narrative threads to link them up explicitly. Writer-director Wayne Kramer examines the issues behind the illegal immigrant problem in USA who are either trying to lay low in avoiding the law, or trying their best to gain legal residency with each experiencing different challenges that lie ahead in their quest.

And it's quite ambitious for Kramer to try and pull off no less than seven parallel threads in the film, which to a certain extent I felt was largely successful, despite some being almost peripheral if not for the presence of a recognized star. Anchored by Harrison Ford as Max Brogan, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent, the film weaves in and out of the different threads without feeling too forced, or the need for some compulsory and carefully designed moments to link the stories up intricately. Sometimes like the six degrees of separation, the film captures the fact that we don't have full details of that web of links, and it will feel very artificial if everyone knew everyone else, or if one event would impact severely on another.

In any case, each of the story lines were engaging enough, some employing deep emotions to argue their case, while others even had to build to a crescendo of all out action, such as a supermarket shootout (one of the nicely executed ones I've seen). There's an illegal Mexican woman (a very short role by Alice Braga) who begs Ford's Max to look after her young son in the care of unfriendly relatives, a Jewish musician (Jim Sturgess) who's waiting to qualify for residency and willing to do just anything to get there, his Australian girlfriend (Alice Eve) and Hollywood actress wannabe who had granted 2 months worth of on-demand sexual favours to an Immigration official (Ray Liotta) in exchange for a green card, whose wife (Ashley Judd) wants to adopt a child placed in a detention centre, who meets an Iranian girl (Summer Bishil whose essay failed to condemn the terrorists of 9/11 and gotten her and her family into hot soup. Then there's a Korean family who is waiting to be naturalized whose eldest son got involved with thugs (ala Gran Torino rites of passage style), and another ICE agent (Cliff Curtis) whose family cannot stand their estranged sister whom they feel is a disgrace of their values, tradition and custom by adopting the lifestyle of Americans, yet strangely ironic as they too pursue to be American citizens.

Phew, and all this with a little murder mystery thrown into the mix as well. It's about how one aspires to live in a country, yet uncompromising in one's position to adopt and adapt to the new environment. Which brings about some xenophobia, especially if one's too different from the rest, and things are made worst with the citizens unwilling to understand and lend assistance in assimilation to a new country and its idiosyncrasies.

But what seemed to be a common theme here, is how power can be either used to do what's probably morally right, versus abusing it for personal gain. Given three of the lead characters here are law enforcement or in responsible positions in government agencies, it's easy to abuse privilege, and it's nothing new too, even in local context, where sexual favours get traded for leniency or the closing of an eye pertaining to illegal workers, or those here without the proper papers. And since the law is fixed (and sometimes perverse by those who interpret it), and justice blind, I suppose there are times we may be compelled to lend a hand to a stranger out of nothing but on humanitarian grounds, in doing what's right and decent for a fellow human being.

Crossing Over presents many of such situations and while it may be a mixed bag in its narrative, it certainly pushes the right buttons with its star-studded ensemble cast in making the audience think about, empathize with, and examine if the issues presented could have existed in the local context, with similar challenges in the treatment of those who are illegal immigrants.

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fallguy_jack from Canada
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This movie makes crash seem like over-dramatized sensationalism. Crossing Over has a powerhouse cast portraying a far more realistic depiction of attitudes and perspectives in contemporary America. The only reason I didn't give it a 10 is because towards the end one plot stream takes a Hollywood twist, which while not especially relevant, detracts from the gritty realism of the movie.

A lot of people have trouble with portrayals of perspectives which challenge the psychological defense mechanisms we put in place to allow us to filter reality into something easier for us to live with. If we really look at things for what they are, the world is a very scary place. This is why you will notice that people get disproportionately agitated when you challenge these mental constructs, leading to loud and/or ignorant opinions. Jawsphobia from Toronto, Ontario
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Apart from the usual movie-movie technology of enhancing a license plate from grainy dots to sharp numbers, I had nothing against this movie. I strongly disagree with the apparent consensus and the low tomatometer rating. Crossing Over is an emotional film, and makes points that will be unpopular. The film creates empathy for someone we at first shrink from, namely the 15 year old Bangali girl who inflames her classmates on the topic of 9/11. She had forgotten what happened to Bill Maher. Meanwhile Harrison Ford's character Max Brogan gets razzed for any show of empathy or concern for the people is team have to process through immigration. He puts a weathered human face on a job that must be unpleasant. We understand when that climate - peer pressure - causes him to stop short of helping someone in a timely fashion, and Ford is very watchable doing the most mundane things as he confronts the consequences of compromise. I don't feel connections between the characters are implausible. It gives unity to the overall comment on community and who should be included and who should not.

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Dan Franzen (dfranzen70) from United States
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Unlike Crash, another recent disparate-people-dealing-with-a-sociological-issue movie, Crossing Over is poignant, stirring, and rousing, capturing what must be the wrenching experience of being an immigrant, legal or otherwise, in the United States. Led by Harrison Ford, the ensemble cast touches all the bases. Although the movie can be very difficult to watch at times, owing to its subject matter, it's a tough-minded look at the often-tragic issue of immigration.

Ford plays Max Brogan, an INS agent stationed in Los Angeles, who decides to help an illegal textile worker (Alice Braga) by making sure that the woman's son is taken to his grandmother (the woman's mother) in Mexico when the woman is detained. Meanwhile, Max's partner Hamid Baraheri (Cliff Curtis), struggles to reconcile his job with the culture of his family (Iranian) and the reckless behavior of his younger sister. Ray Liotta plays Cole Frankel, an adjudicator who determines the status of immigrants and their green cards; Alice Eve is an aspiring Australian actress who has to degrade herself to lengthen her stay in the country; Ashley Judd plays Liotta's wife, who defends immigrants in status cases. In a parallel storyline, a young Korean youth, days before his family's naturalization ceremony, makes a decision that could have terrible consequences.

All of these story lines are intricately intertwined, but here's where the movie differs from Crash: the interactions of the various characters never feel forced or insincere, and the characters themselves are not simple good people doing bad things or bad people doing good things.

The acting is uniformly grand. Ford, who rarely plays nonhero roles let alone supporting roles, is excellent as the crusty, world-weary agent, trying desperately to solve a serious crime that may hit close to home while also doing the right thing by the young textile-worker mother. Also shining is Judd (and, to a lesser extent, Liotta, although he plays the same character in many of his movies now - a slimeball), but really sealing the deal is Curtis (10,000 BC, Sunshine) as the conflicted agent of Iranian descent.

Like the issue of immigration itself, the movie is complicated, almost detrimentally so, but the conflict should certainly resonate with its audience, even if one is not an immigrant or part of a family that has recently immigrated. Certain scenes are almost deadly with their pathos, figuratively rending your heart as they play out. Emotionally gripping scenes such as these (particularly near the end of the film) exemplify precisely the kind of psychological gymnastics that a director must undertake for a film like this to have any sort of positive effect on its audience. That is, the entire issue of immigration is fraught with anger, deceit, terror, and sadness, and it can be tricky to walk the line between one feeling or another, lest one be accused of bias.

Crossing Over falls into none of the traps that Crash fell into. Its character-driven storyline is brimming with plausible conflict that eclipses the usual cops-and-illegals pastiche, choosing instead to deal with problems on a more individual level. The result is an honest, illuminating look at a sometimes-vexing subject, although it is clearly not for all tastes.

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www.ramascreen.com from United States
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CROSSING OVER is probably one of the most powerful, heart wrenching immigrant stories out there. Some have accused this of taking the concept of Crash and just injecting it with immigrant issues. Be that as it may, even the concept of… Crash wasn't completely all that original but both movies are well-crafted and well-executed. The interconnected characters and plots will leave you to ask questions about the meaning of liberty and what America used to stand for.

The movie depends on its all stellar cast led by Harrison Ford in his most unusual role ever, none of his typical saving-his-family from terrorists, in fact, his character in CROSSING OVER is a loner who wonders whether his job as ICE agent is the right thing to do, he's haunted by the implications and the impact of what he does for a living on those who just want to come here for a better life and angered by those who take advantage of the freedom bestowed upon them. After 9/11 happened, the rules of the game have changed and Ford, in a way, is like that aching voice bugging us to rethink whether enforcing homeland security at the expense of a few good immigrants can be justified.

All the rest of the supporting actors are outstanding in their performances, Jim Sturgess plays a guy who sticks to his principles to get a green card while his girlfriend is willing to sell her body for it. Ray Liotta and Ashley Judd play a married couple and yet they're on two different teams, one takes advantage of the newcomers while the other tries to save them. But the most controversial is probably the issue of freedom of speech presented by writer/director Wayne Kramer in this movie. Once again, it's the question of homeland security at the expense of freedom can be justified or not, it's a bit of a criticism against Patriot Act. But isn't freedom of speech comes with limits? Because if it's without boundaries, then anarchy and division are what would happen.

Wayne Kramer does a good job in making sure not only each plot would flow well with each other as they overlap within a decent running time but he also tackles only the most imperative complexities without wasting time in taking unnecessary shots or moments. I love the story because it punishes those who take freedom for granted and rewards those who cherish it. In the case of that schoolgirl, played by Summer Bishil, it's still arguable.. is she an example of someone who abuses freedom of speech or is she a victim of persecution?

I wasn't a big fan of Wayne Kramer's previous works which include Running Scared and Mindhunters, but CROSSING OVER is a whole nother result, he finally understands what he needs to do to come up with a good story, not simply trying to confuse or depress you. One last note, actor Cliff Curtis gives an Oscar worthy performance as Harrison Ford's partner in this movie, too bad Curtis will be overlooked and this movie will remain as one of this year's under-appreciated. Has America forgotten that it was once a land of immigrants?

--Rama's SCREEN--

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gradyharp from United States
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Though there have been many films about the horrors faced by illegal immigrants attempting to get into or stay in the US, few films have addressed the issues on both sides of the table as well as CROSSING OVER. This film probably did not do very well in theatrical release because of the very difficult subject matter with which it confronts the audience: few people who go to the movies to escape the realities of life outside elect to be disturbed. CROSSING OVER, as written and directed by Wayne Kramer, forces us to learn just how treacherous the matter of immigration is on every level - from the border incidents, to document fraud, to worksite enforcement/raiding, to the concept of asylum, to naturalization, the green card process, the problematic office of counter terrorism, and finally to the basic cultural clashes that pit compassionate law officers against red neck raider type officers. To absorb the intricately woven aspects of the script, a script that addresses immigration issues dealing with Koreans, Africans, Iranians, Australians, Mexicans, and Jewish/atheist Britishers, the audience must pay close attention lest the subtleties are lost in the swirling nonstop drama. Harrison Ford as the compassionate, burned out immigration officer Max Brogan holds the film together as he attempts to make sense of the various irregularities in every aspect of the immigration process. His partner is Iranian American Hamid (a particularly fine performance by Cliff Curtis) who faces family problems with his American born sister and his father who is on the brink of naturalization - one of the many subplots that involves 'honor killing'. Another man Cole Frankel (Ray Liotta is a smarmy role) reveals another view of a 'bad agent' while his wife Denise (Ashley Judd) fights for the rights of an African orphan held for 23 months awaiting sponsorship. A brave Iranian girl Taslima (Summer Bishil) speaks out for the rights of Muslims to be heard and plunges her family into deportation problems. Among the other subplots are stories about a Korean family whose one son (Justin Chon) is forced into gang warfare, an Australian actress (Alice Eve) who must secure her green card through sexual favors with Cole Frankel, a Mexican mother Mireya (Alice Braga) who is captured during a raid at a workplace and befriended by Max Brogan, and young British musician (Jim Sturgess) who must convince authorities of his 'Jewishness' in order to maintain a job that will result in a green card. Each of these stories represents an aspect of our current dysfunctional system management of immigration. The film does not take sides: it merely presents a smattering of the atrocities and imperfectly managed departments of government that together form a system that is chaotic. Of interest, Sean Penn (listed as being in the cast on this page of Amazon.com) requested his small role be cut because of the objections of Iranian-American groups over the use of the 'honor killing' subplot. That may indicate how many people may view this film: the story will either anger or disgust some viewers. But what this very well acted and produced and directed film does is provide windows through which we may more closely examine the tragedies of our current immigration system. Perhaps change will occur once people are informed of the injustices. Grady Harp

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kosmasp
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It's really surprising (for me) to read, that Kramers (director/writer) previous efforts as a writer, were Mindhunters and Running Scared (which he also directed). Both movies, that are more in the action genre and wouldn't really leave with the feeling that the guy who made those movies, could/would be able to make a drama, that can be compared to Traffic and Crash.

Even if you don't feel it lives up to those two (which I feel too), it's still a pretty good movie. You have great actors and there is no holding back any punches. At times it gets really political (and how couldn't it go that way), although sometimes you'd wish even more involvement or that he would shed more light into some segments ... but then again, the movie might have felt too long if he did.

As it is, this is a rock solid drama, about migration (immigration) and many other things in the US.

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Gordon-11 from Earth
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This film looks at the experiences of five individuals, who crosses path with an Immigration officer.

"Crossing Over" is more than I expected. It tells so many forgotten stories that are worthy of mention, because of their desire to strive for a better life. This type of film is always in danger of stereotyping or misrepresenting minority groups in a negative way, but in "Crossing Over" there is no such problems as the characters are skilfully presented. I particularly like the imagery of motorway junctions shown several times in this film. It parallels the characters in the film, making decisions to turn one way or another, and the amount of traffic that passes through borders.

It also brings out many points for discussion. What would you sacrifice to become an American citizen? What choices would you make, no matter how hard and painful they are, to make a dream come true?

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barryweir from London, England
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I am an immigration lawyer, albeit an English one. I started my career dealing with asylum cases, family reunions and illegal immigrants. Over the years I have gone on to act for students, entertainers, high net worth individuals and corporate clients. There is little in this field I have not witnessed, from bigotry, to desperation, to the rich trying to take advantage, from immigration officials acting to corruption in my very own profession.

I have to say that this movie explores the issues surrounding immigration extremely well. Forced removal, failed attempts to cheat the system, the motivations for naturalisation (which, as the movie suggests, are not always for the joy of becoming a new citizen) and the general drive of some people to find a better life for their family. I also used to be engaged to an Iranian so I was quite impressed with the portrayal of the Iranian family. I do not mean honour killings, that is not a common thing in wealthy Iranian families, but what often can be is the concept of how one appears to others in the culture and the effect of negative gossip on the reputation of the senior members of the family.

Also, a lot has been made about the 9/11 "sympathiser" storyline. Indeed, there is one reviewer on here who refers to it as disgusting. How laughable. It is perhaps a shame that audiences, particularly American ones it seems, do not actually listening to the dialog. What the character of Taslima says is that she does not agree what they did but she understood the motivation. The movie then cleverly goes on to show the conclusion jumping nature of some Americans, in this instance the immigration official. At the end of the day Taslima's possible terrorist sympathies are left ambiguous, neither confirmed or disproved, and that is why I think a lot of less intelligent viewers jump to the same conclusion that the fictional official does by filling in the blanks that they desire to see because they do not wish to have a dialog about a difficult subject.

The only disappointing part of the movie for me was the Harrison Ford storyline. I didn't feel that any part of it explored any particular immigration related issue until the penultimate scene and I couldn't understand the motivation behind Ford's character. However, that aside I couldn't fault this picture, either in it's script, it's acting or it's direction.

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AKAs Titles:


Certifications:
Argentina:13 / Australia:MA / Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) / Canada:13+ (Quebec) / Finland:K-15 / Germany:16 (f) / Hong Kong:IIB / Iceland:16 / Ireland:16 / Ireland:18 (video rating) / Japan:PG12 / Mexico:B15 / Netherlands:12 / Norway:15 / Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) / Portugal:M/16 / Singapore:M18 / South Korea:18 / UK:18 / USA:R (certificate #44822)