In viaggio

“The globalization of indifference has taken from us the ability to weep,” said Pope Francis while visiting Lampedusa, the island many refugees attempt to reach by boat to set foot on European soil. His many journeys of this kind can be seen as an attempt to break that cycle of indifference. In nine years he’s visited 53 countries over 37 trips.

The pope’s first destination was Lampedusa, the island where documentary maker Gianfranco Rosi made his impressive film Fire at Sea, and he also traveled to precisely those areas in the Middle East where Rosi shot Notturno. This piqued the director’s interest, and he decided to make a film combining archive footage from the visits, news reports and scenes from his own work.

Pope Francis is shown embracing refugees and prisoners, and being open to discussing the subject of abuse within the Catholic Church. The film brings into sharp focus what a peaceful and calming factor the pope is in a chaotic and unjust world, and how this exhausting role weighs ever more heavily on his shoulders.