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Film Analysis: The Citizen

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The title of the film watched itself gives a story. The title “The Citizen” infers that it will be about somebody who goes through the journey of becoming a citizen. The intended audience of the film includes adults to see the story of a man who started from nothing who rises the social and economic ladders. The Citizen starts with the main character, Ibrahim, winning the green card lottery and being allowed into the United States one day before the attacks on the twin towers in New York. Ibrahim lands in New York where he is interviewed by customs as to why he wanted to enter the United States, who he knows here, and what he wishes to accomplish in the States. The officer who questions him becomes suspicious when Ibrahim spoke of his …show more content…

Ibrahim leaves and gets a hotel room in Brooklyn where he meets Diane, his first friend in the States. Ibrahim and Diane go out and explore New York together where they become close. Ibrahim tells Diane that he is from Lebanon and moved between different countries before he ended up in the States. Ibrahim is walking through the streets of New York when he comes across a supermarket where he finds a new friend, Mo. While he is here speaking to Mo, an airplane destroys one of the twin towers. Twenty minutes later, another plane destroys the other twin tower. The next day, Ibrahim and Diane go to a blood drive to help the world trade center victims. Soon after, Ibrahim is arrested and questioned for six months. He is questioned because his arrival one day before this tragedy was highly suspect and the officer who interviewed him at customs was suspicious of him and marked him as a red flag. While he was being held, he was questioned about his cousin and his whereabouts. It turns out that Ibrahim has the same last name as one of the hijackers that ran a plan into one of the twin towers. The hijacker not only shared his last …show more content…

I felt that the story was well told but could have had more poverty and hardships shown throughout the film. I also felt like the court case seemed too short and should have been better defended on the prosecutors’ side to add effect and emotion to the film. My favorite part of the film was the court case, even though I think it should have been longer. I felt the way Ibrahim answered the questions from the prosecutor and his lawyer were very well said and amusing. “Maybe you should read the constitution before asking your questions.” was one of the funny things that Ibrahim said to the prosecutor. From this film, I learned how hard it can be for somebody to immigrate to the U.S. from a country associated with terrorism. This impacts me especially because I see individuals daily who are obviously from the Middle-East and will now wonder how hard it was for them to get here and if they have any trouble throughout their lives here in the U.S.. Nothing really surprised me in the movie except the homeless man stealing everything of value in Diane and Ibrahim’s apartment. I sensed the possibility but was still surprised that it happened. I feel that somebody in the same situation would think twice before breaking the trust of friends who are trying to help you, who put a roof over your head and feed you. I felt that one drawback of the film was the obviously low budget to make the movie. I feel like the movie could

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