Lets be honest, Sin Nombre isn’t going to be an easy watch for the average punter. It’s a film that looks at the utter hopelessness of life in the gang controlled world of Central America. Unlike much of what comes out of Hollywood, Sin Nombre take an honest look at life. It forgets to glamorise the situation, there are no set action pieces or amazing pyrotechnics. There are no over dramatised police chases – hell, there are NO police chases. And to make things work, the ending can be viewed as happy, sad, or down right depressing, depending on your point of view and who you were cheering for.
Basically it’s two stories whose paths intersect randomly and with massive consequences.
Sayra’s father risked everything, returning to Central America to take his reluctant daughter back to America, to a life that would be better than anything Central America could offer. It wouldn’t be an easy journey, but it is one he’s made a few times, so being a veteran would make it a little easier for Sayra.
Casper on the other hand is caught between two worlds, the girlfriend he loves from a respectable family is kept a secret and at odds with his life as a tough new gang recruit living in the brutal world of the Mara Salvatrucha. When things come to a head, his act of revenge/redemption marks him as a dead man as the Mara put a price on his head.
All of this is set against the back drop of poverty and hopelessness, along with sweeping vistas of Central American countryside, as the story predominately plays out on the roof of a train.
You could call Sin Nombre a love story, a coming of age story or even a redemption tale. But in reality it’s a parable about the unfairness of our disjointed global existence, where depending on where you were born decides weather you get a choice in life or not.
Riveting, if not action packed, viewing. FILMGUIDE rating: Reviewed by: Jonathan Read Release date: May 13th, 2010 Stars: Marco Antonio Aguirre, Leonardo Alonso, Karla Cecilia Alvarado Length (Minutes): 96 Languages: Spanish, English Subtitles: English Director: Fukunaga, Cary Studio: Madman
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