Best film I have seen this year.
I started to reply to some of the negative responses to the film but then I realized that to love this film you have to understand where the two main characters are coming from. This could happen because you have felt like one of the them or you have known someone like one of them in your life. Both are true in my case. I have known people who love life and have come from poor beginnings and are eager to achieve prosperity and happiness in this country and I have known older people who have had full lives who have decided that they are ready to die. I don't believe William was depressed I just believe he felt that he had had enough of this life and was ready to go.
This film reminded me of the great film directed by Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami called A TASTE OF CHERRY (1997). The basic storyline was very similar. I appreciated GOODBYE SOLO more because it was set in familiar territory to me and also I liked the characters in this film better but the premise of both of these films were equally intense and moving.
I loved both of the main characters in this film and both of the actors that played them. There can be great intensity in playing a character with subtlety the way Red West played William. In an opposite way there was such joy in watching Souleymane Sy Savane play Solo. He passion for life, his family, his friends, and his future was beautiful and while it may have seemed over the top because we don't see that kind of enthusiasm very often in most people in this country it was totally believable to me. He was a vibrant and unique person who appreciated what he had and strived for an even better life.
The ending was heart wrenching but I understood why William took his life. That was his choice and I think after reading his little diary Solo understood that there was nothing he could do to change that.
I think the bond that occurred between these two men was incredible and not often seen in american films. This was a very special film because we don't quite understand Solo and his caring for someone so deeply that he just met. If we were all as caring for our fellow man as Solo was, this may sound sappy but, what a beautiful world this would be.
"The secret waits for eyes unclouded by longing."