After reading mixed reviews on IMDB, I decided to give the movie a try. It was well worth it - the film has virtually everything I look for, in film, and the only reason I wouldn't rate it higher is because of my subjective feelings for other films I love just a bit more. (I've never rated any movie a 10 on IMDB. That's just how I am.) The pace is stable, does not linger on exposition or fill the time with pointless scenes, nor does it wear you out with constant action scenes. The cinematography is as good as you could expect for a drama that isn't trying to be an "art film" - with some beautiful and gritty settings and appropriate lighting, The story is solid, with a couple of interesting surprises, and the script comes across very natural - far more so than many TV series or direct to Netflix movies. The casting and acting, however, is what carries it all the way home.I'll admit much of the time I was teary eyed watching this film, especially the ending. I don't typically hunger for "feel-good, family-friendly fare" because in the real world there is a turmoil in humanity that once you see it, you can't unsee it - and any movie that attempts to sugarcoat that while attempting to address a serious subject, to me, feels pretentious. However, in spite of this movie's excellent portrayal of a father and son in an increasingly desperate situation, the movie DID make me feel good, even while making me cry. It gave me a release.Demian Bechir make acting look easy for his Oscar-nominated role as Carlos, an undocumented Mexican immigrant working as a landscaper in Souther California and trying to support the life of his troubled teenage son. Carlos is unflinching in his dedication to supporting his child, no matter how tense things seem between them. Luis, fourteen, is increasingly restless with his life in a gritty, low-income neighborhood, where he and his friends picture their futures with less and less optimism. Day by day, the ominous proximity of gang activity beckons Luis to drop out of school and succumb to the 'hood life, which already seems to have appealed more to his best friends than the perceived alternatives of washing dishes or mowing lawns.During a heated conversation about Luis' suspension from school for an altercation with another student, Luis shouts at Carlos to "Go mow some lawns!" The helpless alienation Bechir portrays as Carlos, despite his tireless efforts to provide the best possible future for his son, is reminiscent to Kevin Spacey's father-daughter relationship in "American Beauty", though played with a much more serious tone. During one of the more heart-wrenching dialogues in the movie, Luis questions his father, "Why did you have me? Why do all these poor people have kids?" After a devastating theft threatens to destroy their future, it is interesting to see how both Carlos' and Luis' different moral codes interpret the scenarios they encounter as a team - Carlos, the law-abiding citizen, who respects authority and tries to make as little waves as possible, and Luis, with his high ideals and desire to take fairness and retribution into his own hands because nobody else will. This film, though its content could be powerful enough influence people regarding current social ssues, does not resemble a propaganda film, in case you were curious. Far from being a political commentary, it is a story about family, hard work, and difficult choices, though in order to tell that story, realistic examples are shown of the emotional deterioration faced by real people, brought on by the fear of losing their jobs or worse, the forced separation from their families or children, regardless of sole provider status. As I said earlier, "family friendly" isn't always a draw for me, but yet I feel relieved this film is appropriate enough to be shown to middle school aged kids, provided they don't mind reading some subtitles. (Most of the movie is in English but there are some Spanish parts.) Cursing and violence are fairly minimal, and there's no sex. I hope that some social studies teachers will take advantage of this film's temperance and use it to catalyze discussion with their students. "A Better Life" is a film about a hard life, one that aches with hope, and certainly should make you think, but should not make you bitter. If anything, you may find a newfound admiration for people who are faced with situations like Carlos and gratitude for comforts you took for granted. Whether or not the story itself is something you think you've seen before, I doubt you've seen it acted better. "A Better Life"'s characters are strong, courageous, and not easily forgettable. At the end of the movie, I was shaking. I couldn't wait to write this review.

Bichir's spectacular performance aside, I am not convinced with the power of this movie's story that seems to impress most other reviews I have glanced across.Main reason being parts of the plot itself seems to be inconsistent with what I would expect to see in reality. The key event in this film - the truck being stolen - is what I find to be utterly ridiculous on the father, given that he has been in this line of business for so long (and had demonstrated enough business sense and maturity to gain the trust to 'inherit' the business) he should not have been this naive to allow such a thing to happen WAY TOO soon.That goes the same for other inconsistent events. Another aspect of disappointment comes from the side characters. Poor acting performance is not the issue here (assuming they are not professional actors themselves), but the main culprit is that the director has failed to allow each of these characters to evolve their roles more significantly to address the key subject matters which this film is trying hard to convey. Even the son is too one-dimensional which is far below my expectations. I do not see any hint of attachment or chemistry from these characters' to the main leads nor addressing communal/political/immigration issues in their own way. Their conversations are dull, like poorly made soap operas. In fact, the only impression I had was that they were just extras filling up the time to make the movie longer than it should be. I have watched other movies dealing with similar themes but at least those movies have proved to be more wholesome than this one.

What a fantastic film. I heard about it briefly, but had no intention to watch it. But when Demian Bichir got nominated for Best Actor I decided to give it a go. And I'm really happy I did. Demian gives the most genuine, moving performance I've seen from an actor this year. While I had felt that Jean Dujardin was a lock for the Oscar (Clooney was a little over rated in The Descendants, I just didn't believe his character enough), after this I changed my mine. He should have won for this incredible performance.The story is pretty fairly straight forward. He's an illegal Immigrant from Mexico trying to make a better life for himself and his son. He has to work long hours as a gardener. Because he has to work so much, he has little time for his son and struggles to relate to him because of it. He also feels his son doesn't really understand or value his heritage and he wants to teach him this and how to be a good man. Given his predicament this is very hard, but he does what he can.There are some great moments in the film. For me the most moving of which is when his son decides to help him retrieve something that was stolen from them. They are just able to narrowly escape without harm and in that moment their first father/son moment is forged and they finally bond together. Bichir captured this so genuinely it had me fighting tears. It was a very subtle scene but it really hit me, seemingly out of nowhere.Now what I also loved about this was how relevant this film was with the immigration issue raging in the states. And the film wasn't too preachy. It just honestly presented what's happening. While he was clearly a good man, he was here and worked illegally. And while your heart broke for him at times, you had to remember that laws are laws and need to be upheld. While he was really was a good person, other immigrants had less honest intentions. So it's really a very complex, shades of grey type situation. The film didn't have an agenda and was just honest about it. And I loved it for that. At the end of the film I didn't find myself on either side of the debate. I just felt a sense of sorrow for so many people that you know are going through this. Can you judge each person on an individual basis? Can an illegal immigrant be judged based on their how they've lived their life once here? This is a complex situation and this film is an accurate representation of it. One of the best (and sadly unrecognized) films of 2011.http://andretms.blogspot.ca/@the_movie_snob

I am intimately aware of the struggles of Latino undocumented immigrants in this country and this movie captured that struggle so well, albeit very specific to the region they live in. It shows US citizens who may not understand the significance of what these people give up in order to attempt to provide for their families. Yes, to give them a better life whether here or by sending money home to their native countries.I watched the movie twice, and cried both times, even knowing that their was no way the movie would end happily. But it did end with a glimmer of hope for the future for both father and son and that neither will give up...