Io Capitano
Directed by Matteo Garrone
Written by Matteo Garrone, Massimo Gaudioso, Massimo Ceccherini, Andrea Tagliaferri
Starring Seydou Sarr, Moustapha Fall
Unrated
Runtime: 2 hours, 1 minute
In theaters February 23

by Ryan Silberstein, Managing Editor, Red Herring

In a time when we are questioning who has the authority to tell stories of disadvantaged groups, Italian filmmaker Matteo Garrone offers a story of two Senegalese teeangers on a journey across the Sahara Desert in search of better opportunities in Italy. Io Capitano doesn't make explicit connection to the migratory surge in 2015, rather, it keeps its story focused on its point-of-view characters and their personal journeys across the continent. 

We meet Seydou (Seydou Sarr) and Moussa (Moustapha Fall) in their hometown of Dakar, Senegal. With their love of music and frustration at their economic status, the two convince each other to leave Senegal and travel to Italy. The two teens face obstacles throughout their journey, which involves falsified passports, torture at the hands of Libyan organized crime, bricklaying, and more. While their fate once they reach Italy seems uncertain to them, the call of Europe provides a sense of sustaining hope throughout their sojourn. 

The beauty of North Africa is on display throughout Io Capitano, impressively captured by cinematographer Paolo Carnera. Most stunning are the scenes depicting Seydou and Moussa’s journey through Mali and Niger into Libya. From riding in the bed of a possibly indestructible Toyota truck to trekking over sand dunes and finding a house wealthy enough for palm trees and a fountain in the middle of the desert, their journey takes them across a harsh  but beautiful environment. Every image is filled with a reminder of how desolate and inhospitable the Sahara is for humans, suggesting that the whole world is the same for the global poor. 

While Seydou and Moussa’s odyssey takes them longer than expected and involves a lot more trials, Io Capitano is much more focused on the journey than the destination. Here, Italy/Europe is seen as a kind of abstract Shangri-La, echoing the way immigrants to the United States talked about our country as a land of opportunity in the 19th and early 20th centuries. While it seems like the two teens understand that they will still face hard times once they get there, this idealized view of the west allows them to hold onto hope no matter what they face on the way there.

The film would likely not work at all without its charming lead actors. Both have a palpable amount of charisma on screen, and the immediacy of the camera to their faces throughout the film offers many chances for them to demonstrate these qualities. A lot is asked of these young actors, and both of them make it look easy. Seydou especially anchors the film with his sense of goodness and humanity in the face of the many setbacks along the way, and when he risks his own life for his fellow migrants, it is always believable thanks to the strength of the performance.

Io Capitano is getting deserved attention for being a nominee for Best International Feature at this year’s Oscars, and rightly so. While the individual elements of the story may be familiar in broad strokes, there’s so much here to engage with that feels distinct to this story.