Pretty Good

Absolutely the worst movie.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

The film starts out captivating your attention by throwing yourself into the perspective of a Gangster. I like the real-life sense that you get from watching the movie. I didn't dislike anything about the movie. I loved how professional and high-budget the film seemed. The film seemed not American because there wasn't a happy ending. Usually, in an American film there are basic guidelines that the movies follow. Culturally, the difference between Mexico and America was evident from the gangs to the clothes the actors wore. It was easy to see that crime overtakes at least some cities in Mexico. The perspective I take from this film is that the only reason these people wanted to cross the border was for hope of a better life. The people who actually stay in Mexico are the gangs, it seemed to me that those who wanted to leave were the ones not in gangs. If I was in Smiley's position I probably would've done exactly what he did. It seems that if you are not in a gang that you are in danger. I wouldn't change the ending; what made the movie so good was the realistic feel that the ending could've happened in real life.

Sin Nombre was a very eye opening film. The film immerses you in the Mexican gang culture through the story of a La Mara gang member named Willy, or Él Casper. If a viewer is unaware of what goes on in a gang, this movie definitely shows them. Él Casper recruits a young child named Benito, later named Smiley, into La Mara. Smiley's grandmother does not want Casper to take her grandson, but he does anyways. This definitely shows how much power the gangs have in Mexican culture. Smiley goes through many tough experiences to join the gang, including getting beaten for 13 seconds by the gang members and having to kill a member of the opposing Chavala gang. This was what really showed me the struggles that a child and family can go through due to the gangs. Another surprising part was at the end of the movie, when Smiley was ordered to kill Casper. He was ordered to kill Casper because during a train robbing mission, Casper killed the second leader of La Mara, named Lil' Mago. Casper was getting revenge because Lil' Mago tried to rape his girlfriend, Martha Marlen, and when she resisted, he killed her. If it was an American movie, Smiley would have not been able to kill Casper, and he would have gotten away, but instead Smiley shoots Casper after exclaiming, "Mara por vida." This means Mara for life, proving how quickly a small child's life changed after joining the gang. Overall, this movie showed how gangs can ruin the lives of Mexicans.

I personally enjoyed this movie a lot as it was my first viewed international film. I liked how the director was able to show us what gangs might actually be like in these Central American countries and how they are spread out throughout the continent. Willy seemed to be getting tired of the gang life, and when the La Mara leader killed his girlfriend, Willy was tipped over the edge. Willy then proceeds to kill the leader of the La Mara which basically turns him into a dead man because every La Mara person is coming after him. I thought that this would be very uncommon of a gang member killing another "brother" because they all treat each other like family. At the end of the film, I didn't really enjoy seeing Willy getting shot by Smiley. I would've rather liked to see Willy to escape with Sayra and cross the creek, making it to America to start a new life.

Engaging, gritty drama.In Honduras, a man, his son and daughter set out to get into the United States and ultimately New Jersey, where his wife and remainder of his family are. Their journey will take them through Guatemala and Mexico. Meanwhile, in Southern Mexico, a young man is struggling to reconcile his membership of a gang and his personal life. Soon, circumstances will force his and the three Hondurans' paths to converge, for better or worse...A good story, well told. A story of overcoming hardship, doing the right thing, loyalty and what some people go through in order to migrate to another country.Not perfect - there was an inevitability and predictability about the plot and it felt contrived at times.Good performances all round.