A Better Life
Release date: 2011-06-24
Votes: 250
Genres: Drama
A gardener in East L.A. struggles to keep his son away from gangs and immigration agents while traveling across town to perform landscaping work for the city's wealthy landowners.
Reviews
Filipe Manuel Neto
**A good story, in which the search for a stolen van is linked to the recovery of a father's relationship with his teenage son.** For many people, the USA is a land of dreams, of opportunities, where they dream to go, in order to free themselves from the harshness of their lives and the lack of conditions in their own countries. The same is true here, with Europe, and very particularly with Germany. Portugal, my country, is also very popular, but it is a country where most people simply pass on their way to the “promised land”. Personally, I have nothing against these migratory flows. The truth is that we will need this workforce to compensate for the lack of births in our countries and also the lack of workers for simpler services, which we, with our academic degrees, tend not to do. These are people we must welcome, although this should not prevent us from implementing rules, policing borders and demanding that reasonable requirements be met, whether for granting visas or obtaining citizenship. The film that I am discussing today is precisely the story of an illegal Mexican immigrant who crossed the border and settled in California with his teenage son. He buys a van to establish himself as a home gardener, but ends up seeing it stolen by another immigrant who had tried to help, and it is up to him alone to try to recover it, as he could never go to the authorities without ending up. stuck. The search for the stolen van will, on the other hand, allow a closer relationship between father and son, at a very sensitive moment when the young man seemed quite seduced by Hispanic gangs and by a life associated with crime and the underworld. Clearly inspired by _Bicycle Thieves_, a classic of Italian cinema, the plot is good and touching, it has a dose of emotion that proved to be very positive, and the characters are credible and worthy of our compassion. The two main roles in this small but well-executed family drama are played by two Hispanic actors, Demián Bichir and José Julián. I don't know any of them, but I think they both managed to get away from the challenges they faced quite well, and it could even be said that Bichir shone, with his serious, slightly emotional and authentic performance. Moreover, the actor even deserved an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. The cinematography, sets and costumes are quite regular, with no major particularities or aspects worth noting. The visual and sound effects used are good, and quite discreet, working quite well. It's a film that doesn't technically stand out, in order to leave us fully involved in the story it tells us.
Movie Recommendation
Blood Money2017-10-14Three friends on a wilderness excursion must outrun a white collar criminal hellbent on retrieving his cash, but soon their greed turns them against each other. A modern re-telling of Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948).More...
Michael2011-09-14Although to the outside world he seems like the a perfectly normal insurance broker, Michael secretly keeps a 10-year-old boy, Wolfgang locked in a room in his soundproof basement.More...
Inseparable Bros2019-05-01Se-ha who is a physically handicapped and Dong-gu who is a mentally handicapped are not their own brothers. But while living 20 years together, the two became indispensable to each other. One day, the mother of Dong-gu suddenly visits him and acts as his guardian.More...
A Bird of the Air2011-09-23A man in search of his past, and a woman who lives in the moment, are brought together when they pursue the origins of a stray parrot in this comedic and romantic drama.More...
The Outsider2002-11-10Montana sheep farmer Rebecca Yoder offers sanctuary to an on-the-lam outlaw, Johnny Gault, who is suffering from a gunshot wound. Yoder is a recent widow, and her decision to help the outsider doesn't sit well with her Quaker community. As a romance brews between her and Gault, it puts in jeopardy her standing among her devout neighbors. But when an evil rancher makes a play for the community's land, Gault's sharpshooting skills might prove his worth after all.More...
Four Kids and It2020-04-03A group of kids on holiday in Cornwall meet a magical creature on the beach with the power to grant wishes.More...
In a Better World2010-08-26The lives of two Danish families cross each other, and an extraordinary but risky friendship comes into bud. But loneliness, frailty and sorrow lie in wait.More...
Red Dawn1990-10-18On October 2, 1968, a student uprising descends into violence after the Mexican government begins to use lethal force against the protesters.More...
The Precocious and Brief Life of Sabina Rivas2012-11-09In the Mexican-Guatemalan border, young teenage lovers, Sabina and Jovany, both Hondurans, accidentally meet again after some years without seeing each other. She plans to get to the United States and dreams about being a great singer; he commits all the required atrocities to be accepted by the gang: la Mara Salvatrucha. Sabina and Jovany crashed with the most adverse conditions at the border like white slavery, the Mexican and American migratory agents Burrona and Patrick, the brothel matron Doña Lita, Don Nico the Mexican Consul in Tecún Umán, the drug trafficking networks, the army and la Mara Salvatrucha.More...
The Brave Little Toaster1987-07-09A group of dated appliances, finding themselves stranded in a summer home that their family had just sold, decide to seek out their eight year old 'master'.More...
The Secret of My Success1987-04-10Brantley Foster, a well-educated kid from Kansas, has always dreamed of making it big in New York, but once in New York, he learns that jobs - and girls - are hard to get. When Brantley visits his uncle, Howard Prescott, who runs a multi-million-dollar company, he is given a job in the company's mail room.More...
The Greatest Game Ever Played2005-09-30A biopic of 20-year-old Francis Ouimet who defeated his golfing idol and 1900 US Open Champion, Harry Vardon.More...
Wimbledon2004-09-13Britain’s Peter Colt has never quite lived up to his dreams of tennis stardom. Once ranked as high as number 11 in the world, the journeyman veteran has watched his number slip to 119 as his confidence on the court slowly ebbs away. Now, on the eve of his leaving the world of professional tennis, he’s granted a wild card, allowing him to play his final Wimbledon tournament…make that his final tournament ever.More...
Biutiful2010-10-20This is a story of a man in free fall. On the road to redemption, darkness lights his way. Connected with the afterlife, Uxbal is a tragic hero and father of two who's sensing the danger of death. He struggles with a tainted reality and a fate that works against him in order to forgive, for love, and forever.More...
Personal Shopper2016-12-14Maureen, mid-20s, is a personal shopper for a media celebrity. The job pays for her stay in Paris, a city she refuses to leave until she makes contact with her twin brother who previously died there. Her life becomes more complicated when a mysterious person contacts her via text message.More...
I Killed My Mother2009-06-05Hubert, a brash 17-year-old, is confused and torn by a love-hate relationship with his mother that consumes him more and more each day. After distressing ordeals and tragic episodes, Hubert will find his mother on the banks of Saint Lawrence river, where he grew up, and where a murder will be committed: the murder of childhood.More...
The Way Way Back2013-06-06Shy 14-year-old Duncan goes on summer vacation with his mother, her overbearing boyfriend, and her boyfriend's daughter. Having a rough time fitting in, Duncan finds an unexpected friend in Owen, manager of the Water Wizz water park.More...
Miracles from Heaven2016-03-17When Christy discovers her 10-year-old daughter Anna has a rare, incurable disease, she becomes a ferocious advocate for her daughter’s healing as she searches for a solution. After Anna has a freak accident and falls three stories, a miracle unfolds in the wake of her dramatic rescue that leaves medical specialists mystified, her family restored and their community inspired.More...
Spectral2016-12-09A special-ops team is dispatched to fight supernatural beings that have taken over a European city.More...
Fantasy Island2020-02-12A group of contest winners arrive at an island hotel to live out their dreams, only to find themselves trapped in nightmare scenarios.More...
Similar Movies
Salton Sea
2018-11-11Hoping to convince his wife that a promotion across the country could change their lives, Brian takes her on a trip to a faded resort town where they once honeymooned. Here, Brian is forced to examine his own marriage, fears, and integrity.Princesses
2005-09-02Caye is a young prostitute whose family is unaware of her profession. She meets her striking Dominican neighbour Zulema, an illegal immigrant, after she finds her in the bathroom, badly beaten up. They strike up a close friendship unbeknownst to Caye's xenophobic co-workers.The Lost Boys
1987-07-31When an unsuspecting town newcomer is drawn to local blood fiends, the Frog brothers and other unlikely heroes gear up to rescue him.Games of Love and Cha...
2003-11-25A group of teenagers living in a housing project in the outskirts of Paris rehearse a scene from Marivaux's play of the same name. Krimo is determined not to take part, but after developing feelings for Lydia, he quickly assumes the main role and love interest in the play.West Side Story
1961-12-13In the slums of the upper West Side of Manhattan, tensions are high as a gang of Polish-Americans compete against a gang of recently immigrated Puerto Ricans, but this doesn't stop two romantics from each gang falling in love.Land of Plenty
2004-09-10After living abroad, Lana returns to the United States, and finds that her uncle is a reclusive vagabond with psychic wounds from the Vietnam War.Kāinga
2022-07-29Eight Pan-Asian female filmmakers’ powerful anthology film illuminates the immigrant experience in Aotearoa New Zealand through the lives of eight Asian women connected by the house they call home.The Net
1995-07-28Angela Bennett is a freelance computer systems analyst who tracks down software viruses. At night she hooks up to the internet and chats to others 'surfing the net'. While de-bugging a new high-tech game for a cyber friend, she comes across a top secret program and becomes the target of a mysterious organization who will stop at nothing to erase her identity and her existence, in order to protect the project.American Graffiti
1973-08-11A couple of high school graduates spend one final night cruising the strip with their buddies before they go off to college.The China Syndrome
1979-03-16While doing a series of reports on alternative energy sources, opportunistic reporter Kimberly Wells witnesses an accident at a nuclear power plant. Wells is determined to publicize the incident, but soon finds herself entangled in a sinister conspiracy to keep the full impact of the incident a secret.Avalon
1990-10-05A Polish-Jewish family comes to the U.S. at the beginning of the twentieth century. There, the family and their children try to make themselves a better future in the so-called promised land.A Summer Place
2021-12-07Summer is a permanent state of mind in Limassol, a once small seaside town in Cyprus now transforming into the oligarch paradise of the Mediterranean. Within its asphyxiating environment, Tina, a depressed food stylist is ready to give up on everything on the day of her birthday, until an extraordinary encounter changes her life.Twister
1996-05-10An unprecedented series of violent tornadoes is sweeping across Oklahoma. Tornado chasers, headed by Dr. Jo Harding, attempt to release a groundbreaking device that will allow them to track them and create a more advanced warning system. They are joined by Jo's soon to be ex-husband Bill, a former tornado chaser himself, and his girlfriend Melissa.Little Miss Sunshine
2006-07-26A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.Zabriskie Point
1970-03-26Anthropology student Daria, who's helping a property developer build a village in the Los Angeles desert, and dropout Mark, who's wanted by the authorities for allegedly killing a policeman during a student riot, accidentally encounter each other in Death Valley and soon begin an unrestrained romance.Gods and Monsters
1998-09-12It's 1957, and James Whale's heyday as the director of "Frankenstein," "Bride of Frankenstein" and "The Invisible Man" is long behind him. Retired and a semi-recluse, he lives his days accompanied only by images from his past. When his dour housekeeper, Hannah, hires a handsome young gardener, the flamboyant director and simple yard man develop an unlikely friendship, which will change them forever.Breakdown
1997-05-02On their cross-country drive, a married couple, Jeff and Amy Taylor, experience car trouble after their SUV breaks down. Stranded in the New Mexico desert, the two catch a break when a passing truck driver offers Amy a ride to a nearby café to call for help. Meanwhile, Jeff is able to fix the car and make his way to the café, but Amy isn't there. He tracks down the trucker -- who tells the police he's never seen Jeff or his wife before. Jeff then begins a desperate, frenzied search for Amy.The Glass House
2001-09-14When Ruby and Rhett's parents are killed in a car accident, their carefree teenage lives are suddenly shattered. Moving to an incredible house in Malibu with the Glasses', old friends of the family, seems to be the beginning of a new life for them.A Mighty Heart
2007-06-22Based on Mariane Pearl's account of the terrifying and unforgettable story of her husband, Wall Street Journal reporter Danny Pearl's life and death.Training Day
2001-10-05On his first day on the job as a narcotics officer, a rookie cop works with a rogue detective who isn't what he appears.