| Rating: | ★★★★★ |
| Category: | Movies |
| Genre: | Drama |
The movie started when many of the Chicanos, who are longtime residents of Eastern Los Angeles since the 18th century, demanded equal treatment on the educational field. The problem lies that the schools in East LA are unable to get access to goverment services even if they are under one unified city school district.
Many view this as a form of racial discrimination for the schools on wealthy and white-populated West LA were the ones with such access. It took one Half-Filipina Chicana Paula Crisostomo (played by Alex Vega), to stage a walkout which became the start of the East LA Walkouts. Not only was at Lincoln High School, where Paula attends, staged such action but so did the other schools in the east.
What I really like about this mvie that even if you didn't watched the movie from the start, you get to know the main plot immediately soon after you get to see kids walking out of their schools and shouting "CHICANO!" and "VIVA LA RAZA!".
Unlike other 1960s-based movies, you don't get the feeling that its too retro, but at the same time you do. Why? Maybe because, beyond all that retro hair, clothing, music and everything, we get to see the experience ourselves as if it's happening right at present. I did, I thought it was set sometime in the present, it was only later when I saw Paula's friends with long late 60s hair and everything.
Other than the emorional sympathy that you may feel as you watch many students running for their lives before being caught up by the police and get beaten by batons, you can see how Paula aspires to become successful in her life, reaching what her father could not do when he was her daughter's age.
Later ko na lang nalaman na half-Pinay si Paula sa ina niya. Nalaman ko na Nanay niya ang Pilipino kasi halata naman tatay niya lang ang nagsaSpanish. Other than that, her mom is realy the encouraging and driving force for her daughter to accomplish such feat.
What I really don't like was how obvious racism and treason exist in the government and in the movement respectively. Turned out that Paula's love interest was in cahoots with the higher authorities and had many of the Chicano youth movement's leaders arrested. Good thing that Paula didn't gave in, especially that her papi finally gave her very supporting words. She, with hundred or maybe even thousand of people protesting in front of the LAPD precinct, pointed out to the traitor that no one can stop them for realizing the goal, and they will never bow down even if it'll took a lot of batons to down them all.
Too bad, I didn't finish the movie but like I said before, if you don't watched the movie at the start, you'll known what was going on. The same even if you don't watched it till the end, you'll know by now what will be the outcome of it.
The movie was well-directed, balancing the different subplots (family, boyfriend, in-group conflict) with the main movie plot. Great acting to the actors and successfully convincing to anyone who watched this movie!
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