Dir: Cary Fukunaga, 2009
Casper (Edgar Flores) must escape his brutal gang after committing an unthinkable and fatal betrayal. Sayra is a Honduran girl making her way through Mexico to the US with her uncle and absentee father. Their lives intersect one night, as the migrants ride north atop a freight train. There is a lot before this that's of interest, but I won't do you the disservice of spoiling it.
Sin Nombre is amazing in so many ways. The cinematography is beautiful, especially when it comes to the night shots. The characters are compelling and the problems are palpable. The story is unapologetic and captivating. There is no gloss, no glamor to the gang life it portrays. The violence is disturbingly matter-of-fact; straight up no theatrics. The acting — especially that of Edgar Flores — is phenomenal. He makes you forget Casper is a killer and you see him as the scared, vulnerable kid he is underneath the tattoos and scars. Unsure if he can or wants to survive.
The faint of heart or weak of stomach might not take to this movie. The casualness of its violence and the pervasiveness of its poverty are heartbreaking and gut-wrenching. It's sometimes tragic and often horrifying. It's not a fairy tale. But it's worth seeing. If you make it through the first 20 minutes — in which a very young gang initiate is kicked repeatedly by his new family and the remains of a rival gang member are fed to dogs — keep watching. The experience of watching it — much like that of watching American History X — is not pleasant. But, like American History X, Sin Nombre is powerful, haunting and gratifying.
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