The Oscar nominations were selected last week, and I was surprised to find that a few of my favorite movies were not on the list of best picture nominees. Some of the movies that had the best story-telling and acting received kudos in other categories, but even with an expanded field they did not make it into the best picture pack.
There is one movie that received a nomination for lead actor that deserves the accolades, and it’s out on DVD now. I saw three of the movies in the category and Demián Bichir played his part the best.
In “A Better Life” he is a hard-working illegal immigrant who is working hard to keep his teenage son out of gangs and to give him the better life of the title. Bichir, who is a well-known actor in Mexico, pulls off the role with finesse. The beginning of the movie has little dialogue as we watch Carlos (Bichir) head off to work early in the morning as an assistant gardener on the west side of Los Angeles. It is a world of cliff-side homes that overlook the ocean – and it is a world away from the East Los Angeles one-bedroom he shares with his son Luis (Jose Julian.)
Director Chris Weitz does a great job of showing the dichotomy of the greater Los Angeles area. As Carlos and his boss Blasco (Joaquin Cosio) drive from the west side of Los Angeles back to the east side where they live, they drive through all the enclaves that make up the city. The pair drive through the orthodox Jewish neighborhood near Third Street in Los Angeles into an area dominated by Korean residents, past an iconic Mexican restaurant that was one of my favorite places to eat when I lived in Los Angles, through the worn-out downtown area and finally into East Los Angeles.
When Carlos arrives home he sends his son to bed – and then makes his own bed on the small couch in the living room. The son and father live within small means. But life is about to change for them – for good or bad it isn’t clear. Blasco is moving back to Mexico where he will be able to own a farm of his own. He wants to sell his truck and equipment to Carlos so that Carlos can continue the gardening business on his own. But Carlos has two roadblocks in front of him – he doesn’t have the money to buy the truck. Second, he doesn’t have a driver’s license and he can’t get one because he is in the country illegally. He explains to Blasco that he gave all his savings to a lawyer to try to become a legal resident, but the lawyer swindled him.
Blasco tells him that if he sells the truck, Carlos will be back on the street corner begging for work each day with the other illegals. He tells him that the truck will help him build a better life for his son. While Blasco tries to sell his truck, Carlos returns to the street to find work for the day. He is passed over outside the nursery where he gathers with other men for those who are younger and stronger looking.
His son, Luis, is not really a troublemaker yet. But it seems to be just a matter of time. His girlfriend’s uncles are all in gangs and his best friend can’t wait to get jumped into a gang. He seems to keep himself clean until he gets into a fight at school that leads to his arrest and suspension. The police officers make him remove his shirt so they can see if he has any gang tattoos – despite his vehement denial that he is not in a gang, the officers don’t believe him. But he shows he has no tattoos.
Carlos decides to ask his sister to borrow the money to buy the truck and the tools. He promises to pay her back in a year’s time for the money she and her husband have put aside for their own daughter in case either of them ever lost a job. For the first time in a long time, Carlos seems to have some hope. He buys some Christian talismans, such as a rosary to put in the truck, and he splurges on buying his son a soccer jersey from his favorite team.
But before his first day of work is over, Carlos’ luck has soured again when the old man he selects to be his assistant steals the truck and all the tools. The tragedy – and it is a tragedy for this family – bonds Carlos and Luis as they try to track down the man and get their livelihood back. The movie does not end well for Carlos, but it some ways his decision to buy the truck does end up getting his son into a better neighborhood.
