No Turning Back

Mr Nebot did an excellent job in picking a great story to tell and then telling it so well. His acting was marvelous. I would love to see this movie come out on HBO. It is an ideal medium for a film like this.

This film has a great message. Bad things happen to good people, and you cannot always control the direction your life takes. Everyone in this movie has internal conflicts that we can really see, which is so interesting to watch because everyone in life has an agenda. We are all forced to make choices everyday in order to survive. So many films today go for the happy ending, wrapping a big red bow around it, but unfortunately life doesn't always play out that way. There is no obvious good guy and bad guy here. Instead, we see the propensity in all of us to be both simultaneously. I look forward to future projects from this director, who also happens to be the lead actor, writer and producer. Very inspirational.

So many independent films these days seem to be an opportunity to show off the filmmakers ambitions, rather than what they can contibute to the world with their insights and perspectives. This charming and compassionate film is more of what is needed in this world, and particularly in this country (the U.S.) today. With the monumental self -imposed task of producing, directing and starring in his own first film, Jesus Nebot actually comes through with flying colors. His performance is flawless, and carries with it the sensibilities attributed to another talented actor/director, Roberto Benigni, in his charm, passion and good will (plus, he's way more handsome than Benigni -- sorry Roberto!). And while there are some minor flaws in the dialogue and a couple of unrestrained performances, they do not take away from the other excellent performances (in particular Susan Haskell as the devastated Mother) and the fact that this is not only an important film in its own right (due to the timeliness of its subject matter) but also a representation of this filmmakers strong talents. I hope he gets many more opportunities to make films, as it seems they would only make the world a slightly better place, rather than taking us further down the path of desensitization and despair.

One of the best films I've seen this year! With the market being so over saturated with typical 'good guy, bad guy' Hollywood movies, it's a refreshing change to run into a movie that so beautifully captures humanity. Thank you to the director for taking on such a tough subject and not forcing you to feel a certain way about the subject matter but allowing you to experience all sides of the conflict. The acting is wonderful on so many levels. The father and daughter specifically give knockout performances. The story will keep you on the edge of your seat. The added benefit being that it'll touch your heart on a deep level. It's no wonder this film has won so many awards. If you're not convinced, go check out the film's website for the trailer.

The film deals with a very important issue of illegal immigrants and their daily struggle to make it through in order to give their kids a better future. The problem is with the script that even though tells a fairly interesting story, fails to deal with the issue, and instead presents us with a melodrama, in which all ends are neatly tied. The point of 'No Turning Back' is not really clear, as you never get a sense of what it is that they want to go back to. It seems like similar life to the one they main character had can be rebuild in any other state (The story takes place in California), as well as in Canada, to which they are trying to get. The story also fails to evoke the strong emotional feelings you get when you see 'Sophie's Choice,' nor be charming as 'Three Fugitives.' We do not feel any sorrow for the separation of the child from her father, as we know she is better off with her new family.

Too many issues are being resolved with no real explanation like how Soid found the hiding place of the father and his daughter? How did the police know the exact cruise line company that the father and his daughter were heading for? The movie shows the police somehow finding out that someone is selling them his green card, then showing them coming to a cruise line company, where the father applied for a job under an assumed name. Yet at the end of the movie, they know to go there and not any other place. Other issues are not dealt with like why the father didn't try and run to another state where it would be easy for him to evade the police, or why did the mail policeman decide that the policewomen is not ready for this case. Another unresolved issue is how Soid makes a living. Where does she live? Who pays her to do her documentaries, or where does she get the money to do them if not ordered by any organization?

Some of the sub plots either don't make sense or entirely unnecessary. The relationship between the two cops is poorly written and developed. They seem to have no other cases other than this one. The policewoman looks like a veteran who dealt with many cases in the past, yet the rocky policeman tell her she is not ready for this case. The grieving family seems to go back to normal life very fast. Even before the funeral the father is already back to work. When the father brings his daughter to the hospital no one seems to question the story that he found the child on the street. It is not clear how the police learned of the presence of the child in that hospital.

The relationship between the father and the daughter are very touching, though we don't really get a feeling of what their lives looked like before they relocated to the USA. Would they stay in their homeland should if the mother was still alive? What did the father used to do there? How did the child feel about moving to a different county? The child's view of where her mother is, as well as the way she presents it to the grieving father of the dead girl is well written, and it's too bad there are not enough of this type of writing throughout the script. Another well written and well played scene is when Soid reveals she sold the car.

Most of the acting is good, though I felt the policewoman was trying too hard to be Whoopi Goldberg in 'Jumping Jack Flash.' The policeman's character as a Native American who is late to work because he speaks to a spiritual adviser in the shape of an owl only ridiculed the police investigation. I especially liked the acting of Lindsay Price as the documentary film maker. All of the actors use the 'F' word. Would have been more interesting if each one had his/her own lingo and if they used profanity less often.

The sets lack credibility. In the scene where the two policemen check the computer for the green card fraud, their surrounding is bare. No other tables, policemen, or any other indication that this is a police station. The hospital seems to have no other patients other than the kid. When the father is about to board the cruise line ship, even though it is close to the time the ship is about to sail, there are no other personnel in sight.

The story moves from a drama of a father and his child trying to run away, to an action film with a daring rescue of the child from the hospital, and an attempt of the father to run from the police after being caught. It would have been a lot more interesting to either build it as a journey movie, such as 'Thelma and Louise', while showing the relationships and changes the 3 main characters go through, or build it as a drama of a tragedy hitting the two families, without the action/thriller parts.