Labour Market Integration as an Interactive Process

An undocumented female immigrant in New York has no medical insurance to allow the doctor to visit, shares a shabby apartment with a few other marginalised immigrants, has very limited money for groceries, and jumps between various gig jobs. An iconic case of seemingly failed labour market integration, this woman somehow manages to survive through the support from her migrant solidarity network. A local ethnic shop owner gives her free groceries, while an immigrant taxi driver offers her free rides from job to job. Out of the blue, a stranger hires her for a one-night job in an underground casino, without, however, clarifying her prospective duties. This is how Luciana, the protagonist in the movie Most Beautiful Island, engages in a high-risk informal market game of touching venomous insects to entertain rich clients. The final scene shows Luciana as the winner and sole game survivor, who leaves catatonically but with a tangible cash boon in her purse. The parting smile she then gives us is, nevertheless, telling in that she is determined to come back to play again. In fact, this gaming experience has changed her life forever. She has eventually found a way to earn a lot of money in a short time and resolve all her economic problems while also having proved her skill for this difficult job.