El Norte

Yesterday I have been looking for other one movie which would put some ideas in my mind. And finally I found one - “El Norte” (The North) this movie has been created - 1983 and its basic topic is “American dream” which is really popular nowadays as well. For example, many Lithuanians emigrating to United Kingdom, Norway, etc., for example, Turkish people to Germany, etc. So it is really obvious that people always migrating and it might be because of better job opportunities, love, or dreams to see all the world, achieve something better, etc. also nowadays people are freer to travel, to see places, to live in different countries, to work or study abroad (for example even now I am doing my internship in Barcelona (not in my Motherland - Lithuania, but abroad, because it is more interesting, because I am trying to achieve goals for my future, because I am a person, who likes to take any chances world gives me). So migration is not a new thing in society: it has been popular always. For example, when Colombo found America many Europeans came there, same happen to Australia and so on. So this is different kind of migration, and what about this movie?

This movie shows different “American dream”, dream which actually not a dream: young boy lived in Guatemala (if you would have a look on internet about Guatemala it would give you this kind of answer: “Mountainous, heavily forested and dotted with Mayan ruins, lakes, volcanoes, orchids and exotic birds, Guatemala is one of the most beautiful countries in Central America”. But in reality it is only the nice words, which do not show real situation over there. People are suffering from poverty, unbelievable terrible work conditions and inhuman living conditions, fairness of government, etc. for example in movie people are taken away to be killed and soldier says: “take this shit away” so it shows exactly that poor person has got no rights, they are equal to nothing).

So anyway, boy and his sister lost their family and they decided to go to north, and also they did not have other choice because would be killed in their village. Of course, they were willing to have an American dream life style: money, cars, houses – luckiness, but it did not happen. Because life is not like everyone imagining, that “grass is greener in other side”, yes, of course there are many stories when people became happier, richer and so on, but also there are stories like in this movie: (end of the movie, girl died and boy was working hard psychical job, meanwhile “supervisor” was looking at all of them cheap labors (exactly same like in Guatemala).

Also this movie shows that sometimes because of money and dreams of better future, people can change so much. For example, sister and brother in this movie were really close, like a team, but when “money started to talk” boy forgot about his sister. He had an opportunity to get better job and even citizenship and he was almost taking it, but finally he chose his dyeing sister, to support her the last moments of her life.

Moreover, this movie “talks” about jealousy as well. Enrique was doing well in his job and made other people to be jealous about it, so one man rang immigration and told about illegals only because he wanted Enrique’s job place. So life can be so unfair, especially when you have got no rights, no word, you are just a working body (like Enrique).

Furthermore, Enrique and Rosita were from a little village, actually they have never seen technologies in their lives before, so they were really naive, they could not deal with the modern life system, because it was new for them (for example, they trusted one man, who said that he is going to be their guide to North and in reality he just wanted to get them money, or that episode when Rosita saw beautiful ladies and could not stop looking at them, also when Rosita was not able to use washing machine so she washed all the clothes by hands like she used to do in her village).

All in all, this movie still leaves the chance to decide what to choose: suffer in your own country or even be killed there, or try to survive in different country and keep hoping that finally you will achieve something. I would choose different country, all the world can be my home, just need to work hard and never give up! Of course, this movie shows really bad situation, which is really happening, but life is like this: only the strongest ones can survive, unfortunately.