America Roots for the Dodgers
El Norte (1983)
directed by Gregory Nava
rating: 2 out of 5 cravats
on DVD from Netflix
If it's good enough to appear as a positive example of Southern California movie-making in Los Angeles Plays Itself, then it's good enough for me to add to the Netflix queue. But no streak lasts forever, and unlike The Exiles or Killer of Sheep, El Norte disproportionately treads melodrama for too little fresh air at the surface. No matter how many non-professionals Nava casts, or how much sympathy he has for the roving lives of immigrants - no matter how green the green hills of Guatemala - there is more truth in life than there is in death, and great movies are more than the sum of a filmmaker's best intentions. More importantly, if Kent MacKenzie can do it in 72 minutes, there's no reason that Nava needs 141.
directed by Gregory Nava
rating: 2 out of 5 cravats
on DVD from Netflix
If it's good enough to appear as a positive example of Southern California movie-making in Los Angeles Plays Itself, then it's good enough for me to add to the Netflix queue. But no streak lasts forever, and unlike The Exiles or Killer of Sheep, El Norte disproportionately treads melodrama for too little fresh air at the surface. No matter how many non-professionals Nava casts, or how much sympathy he has for the roving lives of immigrants - no matter how green the green hills of Guatemala - there is more truth in life than there is in death, and great movies are more than the sum of a filmmaker's best intentions. More importantly, if Kent MacKenzie can do it in 72 minutes, there's no reason that Nava needs 141.
posted by NPK at 11:31 AM
<< Home