You were always there.

Creola 2022-04-19 09:03:15

It's all about the fact that Demián Bichir was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. The Mexican actor, who came from a family of films, vividly interprets a little man who is upright, kind, diligent and diligent as a father's love is like a mountain fighting against fate.
However, as mentioned by a film reviewer, the plot is indeed similar to "The Bicycle Stealer": they all bought a car for survival, but they lost it the next day, and they all took their son to find the car. It was the honest man who took the risk and got caught. Of course, after 60 years, the bicycle was upgraded to a car, and the background of the story moved from Italy to the United States. Compared with the previous classics of moral irony, this film focuses on the relationship between father and son. A father who is alone in a foreign land doing heavy physical work has only one wish, that is, to give his son a "better life"; and the birth and growth of his son actually gave the father faith and courage, and this sense of responsibility has also become his spiritual sustenance. . Although there was a generation gap between the two people who didn't like to talk at the beginning, the gap between them was gradually resolved during the search for a car; the son was moved by his father's love, and the father was relieved that his son did not join the gang. The final weeping in prison is inherently sensational, but considering the previous meticulous foreshadowing, it is a natural sublimation.
Another major contribution of this film is that it truly reflects the living conditions of Mexicans who smuggled into the United States: there are gangs who do not do good work, and there are honest and hard-working people like my father; there are mutual help in times of crisis, and there are sad and helpless thoughts; It has relatively better material conditions, but also lacks the original sense of national identity. My father said that when he went north, it was only because other people in his hometown did the same, and he was full of blindness; this is very similar to the Beidrift people in China. Of course, there is another layer of delicate relationship between the United States and Mexico: the Mexican-American War 150 years ago cost Mexico half of its territory, which is still unbearable to this day. At the end of the film, the father re-entered the smuggling journey across the desert not long after he was deported. He made a meaningful pun: Let's go home.

View more about A Better Life reviews

Extended Reading
  • Madisyn 2022-04-21 09:03:52

    The story of illegal immigrants in the United States and Mexico, the father and son's deep family friendship and betrayal of the American dream? I like the plot about human nature to force the uncle and his evil son. Is this emphasizing the American dream of immigrants and national traditions is taboo?

  • Sanford 2022-04-21 09:03:52

    Very touching story. Yes, there are always so many bitter tears for immigrants. The first half was a little procrastinated, and the actors were a bit underwhelmed, but it was still a good movie! Keep supporting independent films!

A Better Life quotes

  • Carlos Galindo: This country is a land of dreams. It can be a hard place, a cruel place. But it's where I work, and I dream of a better place for my son.

  • Carlos Galindo: This truck is my only chance to grow this into something big. So we can move out of here and get you in a better school.