This is an immigrant story in the modern period; this one is set in Queens, New York, particularly in the Willets Point section of Queens near Shea Stadium where the New York Mets played.
Alejandro, or "Ale" (Alejandro Polanco), is a 12-year-old undocumented Hispanic immigrant who has an uncle in Florida someplace but no adult support in New York. He and a younger friend, Carlos (Carlos Zapata), initially sell candy on the subway to raise money. Ale, who is clearly a fast-talking survivor with no formal education, gets work at an auto body shop. The owner, Rob (Rob Sowulski), allows Ale to live in a room upstairs at the shop.
Ale's 16-year-old sister, Isamar or "Izzy" (Isamar Gonzales), appears and moves in with Ale. She works on a food truck, but we soon learn she also works as a prostitute to help make ends meet. Ale's dream is to buy a food truck for him and his sister to operate. He extends his work efforts to selling pornographic DVDs, stealing hubcaps, helping at a second "chop shop" that takes apart stolen cars, etc. This latter place is run by Ahmad (Ahmad Razvi), who clearly is passing some of his street smarts along to Ale.
Ale discovers while loitering at a truck stop that his sister is a prostitute. This bothers him very much, but he initially does not confront her. Clearly, some of her earnings are going to help buy the used $4500 food truck. Finally, Ale buys the truck but soon learns it would require another $10,000 to bring the cooking equipment up to snuff. Ale feels cheated by the man who sold him the truck and despairs of his dream. Ale finally confronts Isamar's prostitution. The film ends with them facing an uncertain future with a sense of resilience.
Like "Man Push Cart," I really liked this movie. The actors are not professionals; they come from the background portrayed in the film. One gets a powerful sense of the immigrant experience in a place like Queens.
Alejandro, or "Ale" (Alejandro Polanco), is a 12-year-old undocumented Hispanic immigrant who has an uncle in Florida someplace but no adult support in New York. He and a younger friend, Carlos (Carlos Zapata), initially sell candy on the subway to raise money. Ale, who is clearly a fast-talking survivor with no formal education, gets work at an auto body shop. The owner, Rob (Rob Sowulski), allows Ale to live in a room upstairs at the shop.
Ale's 16-year-old sister, Isamar or "Izzy" (Isamar Gonzales), appears and moves in with Ale. She works on a food truck, but we soon learn she also works as a prostitute to help make ends meet. Ale's dream is to buy a food truck for him and his sister to operate. He extends his work efforts to selling pornographic DVDs, stealing hubcaps, helping at a second "chop shop" that takes apart stolen cars, etc. This latter place is run by Ahmad (Ahmad Razvi), who clearly is passing some of his street smarts along to Ale.
Ale discovers while loitering at a truck stop that his sister is a prostitute. This bothers him very much, but he initially does not confront her. Clearly, some of her earnings are going to help buy the used $4500 food truck. Finally, Ale buys the truck but soon learns it would require another $10,000 to bring the cooking equipment up to snuff. Ale feels cheated by the man who sold him the truck and despairs of his dream. Ale finally confronts Isamar's prostitution. The film ends with them facing an uncertain future with a sense of resilience.
Like "Man Push Cart," I really liked this movie. The actors are not professionals; they come from the background portrayed in the film. One gets a powerful sense of the immigrant experience in a place like Queens.