Crosstown

Manny Perez as Jesus delivers a passionate speech to the soldiers, complete with what appear to be all the major curse words, explaining his desire to be an American and why Beto shouldn't have been persuaded to serve.

This movie is respectful of Latino culture and portrays positive images when it can, but of course much of the movie is devoted to the negative. There are a lot of subtitles. Some words are blurred and the sound goes out a lot, whether the character is speaking Spanish or English. The F-word got missed by the censors once in the version I saw. No, this is not for kids. There is some violence but it's not really too bad. Much of it is, in fact, the initiation into the gang.

The title of this movie is misleading, since it is not about the soldiers but about those they left behind. "Greencard Warriors" refers to soldiers trying to get their green cards and, in some cases, green cards for their families.

Jesus is an undocumented immigrant from El Salvador. He is determined to achieve the American dream, but for now he seems to have several jobs that aren't very desirable but are all an illegal alien might be able to get. Though they don't listen, he wants his family to speak English because they're in America now. Jesus has a wife Rosa and three children including a young girl. Angel is 14. Early in the movie, Benito ("Beto") joins a gang but says Angel can be a mascot but shouldn't join. The gang members care strongly about each other and it is understandable that a young person might want to join them, even if some of their activities are not quite legal. Jesus has a cousin who needs a place to stay.

At school, Beto watches a presentation by two soldiers who explain that illegal immigrants can get a green card and get their families legal status by joining the military. It is a risk because at the time, the U.S. was fighting in Iraq. President George W. Bush comes on TV later in the movie to praise the efforts of our men and women serving in Iraq. Beto wants no part of this, but the soldiers come to his house and inform the family that joining the military is a way to become legal, and if Beto doesn't, the family could be at risk.

Meanwhile, Angel goes to the local store where he meets Jasmine, who is black and really nice. They hit it off. Jazmine's father LB, a cop, doesn't want her hanging around with one of "them" (and the gang disapproves of her because "they" are the enemy) and he takes her home to her mom Gabrielle. Dre, Gabrielle's boyfriend Dre answers the door. Dad doesn't approve of Dre. Gabrielle has a successful business of some kind which apparently involves cooking. I say successful because she is later shown driving a Mercedes, even though she does live in the 'hood. She's not the type to deal drugs, though Dre might be.

Jesus finally persuades Beto to join the military.

Bad things happen, and not everyone gets a happy ending. In fact, few of the cast get anything close to a happy ending.

I wish the music had been better. Most of it is rap, and not Spanish rap either. Some music is Spanish language, and the music with the closing credits is quite good. Background music is often pleasant and Latin-flavored.

It's worth seeing. Just don't expect to be happy a lot of the time.

**********EIGHT OUT OF TEN STARS**********

El Salvadorian refugee background: In June 1971, President Nixon declared a "war on drugs." He dramatically increased the size and presence of federal drug control agencies, and pushed through measures such as mandatory sentencing and no-knock warrants. Richard Nixon (now dead) created a power vacuum in Central and South America, creating Mexican and Brazilian Cartels that would eventually lay a violent and bloody siege upon the poor people of El Salvador.

Fast forward to 1981, when El Salvador's military leaders began to employ "scorched earth" tactics in their battle against left-wing guerrillas. In Spanish the saying was "sacar el pes del agua," or "remove the fish from the water." Total warfare and destruction was the objective, and the policy resulted in a brutal massacre in the small town of El Mozote. Over the course of three days in January, 1981, approximately 1000 people, almost the entire population of Mozote, were tortured and slaughtered. The American government was intimately involved with El Salvador's right wing government before and after the massacre. We provided them with weapons, money, and political support for a full 11 years after the massacre.

El Salvador's long civil war between savagely repressive U.S.-funded military forces and a leftist guerrilla army ended in 1992. But while the peace accords ended the "war of bullets," the political, social, and economic war began again, and under the rules of the right, the rules of capitalism, and the rules of the United States. In this context, the triumph of the FMLN (Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front)—the former guerrillas—in the last two presidential elections is quite remarkable. The victories of Mauricio Funes in 2009 and Salvador Sánchez Cerén in 2014 have threatened to disrupt the Salvadoran government's historic pattern of compliance with U.S. interests.

The Obama administration has sought to ensure the adoption of corporate-friendly policies in El Salvador by conditioning Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) development aid upon a slew of neo-liberal reforms that include privatization, the relaxation of business regulations, and the enforcement of trade provisions that privilege U.S. corporations.

"Greencard Warriors" has a very special place in my heart: Directed and written by Miriam Kruishoop, "Greencard Warriros", is a touching story of an El Salvadorian family in the United States illegally, trying to better their lives. Helle Jensen takes the helm as cinematographer and along with Kruishoop, beautifully captures the dark Gothic beauty of Latino culture in Los Angeles. I was particularly moved by the opening title sequence showing brothers Angel and Beto riding harmoniously together through their neighborhood; accompanied by the song "I'm an Ese" by Quennine. The Los Angeles city scape certainly isn't wasted in this film, which includes fly over excerpts of sprawling residential LA, many incredible street locale shots, and several ultra realistic Latino gang sequences. Interior shots of Jesus's home utilize close up camera shots displaying shadows and colors emphasizing the extreme pain of the family members, yet emulating a dark Hispanic beauty inherent in hard lined facial features and dark piercing eyes.

Manny Perez stars as Jesus Garza, the struggling family's father and turns in an incredible performance, along with his wife Rosie played by Christianne Christensen. Their oldest son Beto, played by actor Mario Ardila Jr., is quite convincing as a young man turned gang member in effort to bring in money. Angel, their middle child, is beautifully portrayed by actor Angel Amaral; a young El Salvadorian left with few if any choices in his family's struggle for survival. Other acting notables include Cesar Garcia as Mad Dog and Maynor Alvarado as Joker, who both turn in very realistic portrayals of Hispanic street gang leaders.

The plot is based upon Jesus being convinced by two dishonest Army recruiters that the only hope for Jesus and his family's quest for US citizenship is for his son Beto to join the Army. As Beto spirals further into gang life, Jesus pressures his oldest son to join the Army. Beto finally agrees to join the Army in an effort to help his family achieve legal status. After Beto leaves the barrio for the Army, things go down hill for Jesus's family: Angel is accosted by and eventually succumbs to the pressures of the neighborhood gang Beto was involved with and Jesus runs into trouble with the LAPD; forcing him to go into hiding... The very last scene of "Greencard Warriors" featuring Jesus's wife and young daughter is both heartbreaking and angering to say the least...

On closing, the cinematography by Helle Jensen is so moving and encapsulates the Los Angeles Latino struggle. The intermittent use of Spanish and English is masterfully accomplished and is something more filmmakers should try incorporating! Director/ writer Miriam Kruishoop hits a home run with this tragic story of unimaginable pain and heartache. As far as post production goes, this film was wonderfully edited and masterfully mixed with sound effects and music. "Greencard Warriors" strives to address so many different societal issues... 90 minutes isn't enough! The film does feel rushed in certain parts because Kruisshoop has packed so much emotion and many societal issues into one film. This review has only touched on the very basic details of this film. I personally own this film on DVD and highly recommend it to anyone interested in a dose of reality.

the trailer that convince me to see the movie told me that Many Perez gives a great performance as a immigrant father only doing what he thinks is right for his entire family, and the trailer was right about that, but the movie really focus on a 14 year old boy whose a part of this family and how he deals with living in the intercity.

The title would lead you to believe that the main focus on the movie is about a father convincing his son to join the army because the army convinced him that if he can convince his oldest son to do it a green card will be issued for the entire family, and even though this is the theme that ignites the movie, the movie quickly focus on 14 year old Angel whose life falls apart when his older brother, who was protecting him from the dangers of the city, does not come back.

The movie was done well but it depressed me. It's like Boyz in the Hood or South Central, but in those movies at least one character gets a silver lining. I do recommend seeing the movie but not if your in a good mood cause it will bring you out of it. It's so real