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An Historic Collaboration From three Internationally Acclaimed Filmmakers
Three of the world's most celebrated directors—Abbas iarostami, Ken Loach, and Ermanno Olmi—join together to direct a trilogy of interwoven stories set during a train journey from Central Europe to Rome. The characters connect through casual encounters but the stories are related through their themes of social status, the mystery of chance, and sacrifice. An elderly businessman finds solace and a new insight into life when he meets a younger woman, played by Valeria Bruni Tedeschi (Munich), who arranges his train ticket after his flight was canceled. A young man is torn between an older woman who controls him and a younger one that attracts him. And three Scottish youths on their way to the football match of their dreams are forced to open their eyes and see the bigger picture. In each case, the train journey changes the course of the characters' lives.
Member Reviews
All aboard... - RobBC
Three great directors give us three interrelated stories, all of which unfold on a train bound for Rome. An aging professor is returning home from a medical conference in Germany where he was smitten by a beautiful younger woman he met only briefly. Lost in a series of pleasant reveries about what might have been he begins to compose a rambling letter to her, a task that causes him to review his own life. Meanwhile, in another car, a truculent older woman has a series of ridiculous arguments with some fellow passengers while her handsome 25-year old assistant (boy-toy?) sneaks off in order to chat up a sweet young girl from his past. When the inevitable blow-up happens between the two of them she must face some uncomfortable truths about herself. Lastly, a group of coarse but well-meaning Scottish soccer lads on their way to a world cup game are having no luck whatsoever when it comes to tickets and chicks. But when fate places them in an ethical quandary involving a family of Albanian refugees they find themselves having to make one of the most difficult decisions of their young lives. I love the metaphor of a train; it’s a perfectly contained microcosm traveling along a preordained track yet there is always room for the unexpected. Here Kiarostami, Loach, and Olmi use it as a vehicle to explore the natures of truth and reality, conscience and responsibility. The final destination may be tied up a little too neatly, but the journey is still worth the price of a ticket.Subtle, thought-provoking, profound - linnaea
Like many European movies, this doesn't offer flash-and-dazzle but instead makes you think, leaving lots to talk about and ponder in the days afterwards. In other words, it's like eating a full meal instead of the cotton candy of Hollywood's fluff. It also can't be boiled down to a concept or a pitch -- thank god. These interconnected stories offer empathetic portrayals of Scottish football louts (who end up surprising us), Albanian refugees, and a dreamy Italian professor who is, like all the characters, faced with moral choices. Wonderful acting and directing throughout.EUROPE'S JOURNEY - len1970
Europe is slowly becoming one, but with unification comes the reality of inequality and social disparity. In Tickets we see it clearly, how the old has to make way to the new, how the better off have to deal with the have nots, this is a film where Europe's journey into the new millenium is like a train trip where depending what ticket you bought you will have a smooth ride or a bumpy trip.
Member Reviews
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All aboard... - RobBC
Three great directors give us three interrelated stories, all of which unfold on a train bound for Rome. An aging professor is returning home from a medical conference in Germany where he was smitten by a beautiful younger woman he met only briefly. Lost in ...Subtle, thought-provoking, profound - linnaea
Like many European movies, this doesn't offer flash-and-dazzle but instead makes you think, leaving lots to talk about and ponder in the days afterwards. In other words, it's like eating a full meal instead of the cotton candy of Hollywood's fluff. It also ...EUROPE'S JOURNEY - len1970
Europe is slowly becoming one, but with unification comes the reality of inequality and social disparity. In Tickets we see it clearly, how the old has to make way to the new, how the better off have to deal with the have nots, this is a film where Europe's ...