Most overlooked movie of 2003:

To me, this is "Dirty Pretty Things." It did get one Oscar nomination, for screenplay, but lost. It's the story of immigrants in London, of their struggle to succeed in western society, but it could have been set in any major city. The star could have been the Nigerian-born doctor in Atlanta who now draws blood for the Red Cross, the guy who works in the Lake El station who did his degree in chemistry in Sierra Leone, or my friend's father who studied medicine in Ethiopia before coming here to work in a mail room, as much as the London cabbie/hotel clerk who are so much more dignified than most of their passengers.

It's about people who want a chance for themselves and their kids so much that they are willing to trade their respected jobs, the time they put into education, their lives to come somewhere else and start over. If you haven't seen it, you should.