To celebrate the last few days of National Latinx and Hispanic Heritage Month, the Emerald asked UO students to recommend their favorite Latinx films, with genres ranging from tear-jerkers to comedies to biographical dramas.
So bring out the snacks — maybe even a box of tissues — and immerse in the beautiful culture, hardships and joy of the Latinx community.
“Bajo La Misma Luna” (“Under the Same Moon”)
Recommended by UO junior Angel Escorcia-Nunez, director Patricia Riggen’s 2007 Mexican American drama tells the story of a single mother, Rosario, who leaves her family behind in Mexico and illegally crosses the Mexico-United States border. She hopes to obtain a better life for herself and her son, Carlitos, who stayed back in Mexico.
A few years later, family incidents and troubles arise at home which prompts Carlitos to seek out his mother and attempt to cross the Mexico-United States border on his own. Along the way, he meets Enrique, another immigrant, after escaping from an immigration police raid at a shelter. The two embark on a treacherous and emotional journey to Los Angeles in hopes of reuniting with his mother that has viewers constantly ask themselves throughout the movie, “Will Carlitos and Rosario meet again?”
Even at a young age, the film was able to elicit an emotional response, Escorcia-Nunez said. The story resonated heavily with him, as his mother also immigrated to the U.S. in the past to make ends meet, while he and his brother remained in Jaltepec, Hidalgo, with their grandparents.
“I know a lot of peers and loved ones that are in the exact same boat, but obviously the circumstances are different when it comes to details,” Escorcia-Nunez said. “But we’re separated, really. We’re cross-border families.”
Today, Escorcia-Nunez lives in Eugene and is pursuing a degree in journalism at UO, while his parents and the majority of his family live in Mexico.
A takeaway he hopes the audience will learn from the movie is “cherishing the time you have with your loved ones and appreciating every moment you spend with them,” he said. “You never know when you’ll see someone for the last time.”
“Mi Familia” (“My Family”)
The 1995 independent drama remains one of UO senior Anette Rodriguez-Rojas’s favorite films directed by Gregory Nava, she said.
The film depicts the story of a three-generation Mexican American family residing in East Los Angeles. Throughout the movie, the audience watches each generation endure their own set of trials and tribulations — from “illegal deportations in the 1940s to racial tensions and gang fights in the ’60s and ’70s,” according to Rotten Tomatoes.
Rodriguez-Rojas said she first watched the film her freshman year at UO and felt portrayed through the family dynamics shown and the highlighted challenges that minorities face.
“[The film] shows the struggles of building from the ground up and what it’s like going after the American Dream as an immigrant,” she said. “You’ll see a lot that a realistic Latinx family will experience like the role of religion, harsh upbringings, racism and even redlining.”
“Mi Familia” also touches on the theme of “ni de aquí, ni de allá” (“neither from here nor there”), as characters learn how to assimilate to American culture while still being connected to their roots. This also resonated with Rodriguez-Rojas, she said, as she looked back at the culture shock she felt when she came to the UO.
“I felt like I was the only Latina in my classes and was getting really homesick,” she said. “But watching the movie with my sister when I went home on the weekends helped me realize that it was okay to feel those feelings.”
Overall, Rodriguez-Rojas said she hopes others will not only see the movie but branch out to other films made by small directors that are trying to make a name for themselves in the industry.
“Instructions Not Included”
Directed by Eugenio Derbez, the 2013 Mexican comedy-drama captures the importance of family and the unpredictable life as a parent, which UO senior Janeth Alonso fell in love with, she said.
The film stars Derbez himself as the main character, Valentín Bravo, who thrives living the bachelor life in Acapulco, Mexico. However, one day, a former fling named Julie shows up at his door carrying a baby and claims he is the father. Julie abruptly leaves Bravo with the child, Maggie, and later calls explaining she is not ready to be a mother. With Bravo being less than qualified to take care of a child, he seeks out to find Julie, but fails to catch up to her as she flys back to Los Angeles. Eventually making his way to the U.S. with Maggie and a few bumps down the road, he realizes he has to become a father and ends up raising the child.
Filled with laughs and cries, viewers get a front-row seat to the chaotic yet loving life that Bravo provides for Maggie. Later in the movie, more problems arise that will have you reaching for a Kleenex.
When Alonso first watched the film, she said what stood out to her the most was being able to understand the perspective of a parent and the sacrifices they make to provide for their family.
“I just love how family-oriented the movie is, and it’s something that anyone can watch,” she said. “You’ll learn something out of it every time you watch it, whether it’s learning to live life to the fullest or cherishing your family.”
For instance, Alonso said watching the movie monthly with her family helped her establish a closer bond with her father and value their relationship more.
Despite the comedic approach Derbez takes to showcase the mistreatment immigrants often face when coming to the U.S., Alonso said the film does a great job at differentiating the cultures and settings between Mexico and the U.S. and hopes others will learn something valuable from the story or characters.
“Selena”
This 1997 biographical and musical drama — also directed by Nava — has not escaped the mind of UO senior Wendy Palafox-Arceo since she first saw the film at seven years old, she said.
The movie depicts the life of Mexican American singer-songwriter Selena Quintanilla, popularly known as the “Queen of Tejano Music” for her songs such as “Como La Flor” and “Baila Esta Cumbia.” From the moment she discovered she loved to sing to the time of her tragic death, the audience sees all the highs and lows of her career and personal life, as well as the impact she left behind.
For Palafox-Arceo, she said she admired how the film emphasized Quintanilla’s power to break the modesty stereotype for women through her bold fashion choices and how she overcame intersectional problems as a woman of color.
“There’s this scene where she was in a clothing store, and they thought she couldn’t afford the dresses that were there,” Palafox-Arceo said. “She was facing socioeconomic, racial and gender stereotypes which are associated with my identity and are always parts of myself that I have to think of. And that I assume other people see when they see me.”
Palafox-Arceo also said she encourages others to watch the film if they want to know more about Latinx history or understand the struggles rising artists of color face in America.
More importantly, she said she has hope that the next generation of filmmakers will stray further away from harmful stereotypes and provide the Latinx community with appropriate representation.
“There’s still a long way to go,” she said. “I really hope, in the future, there’s a lot more shows and films that disconnect us from the Latinx stereotypes that we’re connected to.”
