La Mission

Director: Peter Bratt
Writer: Peter Bratt
Stars: Benjamin Bratt, Jeremy Ray Valdez, Alex Hernandez, Erika Alexander and Christopher Borgzinner
Summary: Che Rivera, ex-con, bus driver, father, just making a life in the Mission District working on a low rider car, and flirting with his neighbor.  Then one day, after coming back from a low rider cruise, he finds out his son, Jes, is gay.  He freaks out, full of rage.  Facing his son the next day, he get’s violent and throws him out.  Eventually Jes returns home as Che tries to come to terms with having a gay son.

Okay So really there’s more to the plot than that but it gives you an idea of what the film is about.  This is a basic Parent comes to terms about having a gay child.  In this case takes place in a hispanic single parent household in the Mission District of San Francisco.  Sure, maybe the story is a little cliché but this different setting still led to what I believe to be a wonderful movie.  I’m sad that I just watched this on Netflix streaming and didn’t buy the darn thing.

First things first.  Yes, it’s a cliché.  I swear I’ve seen this story before.  I can’t put my finger on it but not sure where.  One difference is seeing the coming out of a gay man from the father’s point of view.  This truly is not Jes’s story, it’s Che’s through and through.  I felt at plenty of moments I’ve wanted to cheer Che on in how he dealt with each of his screw up.  I got mad at him when he did screw up.  I had emotional ups and downs with him throughout the film.  Benjamin Bratt was wonderful in the role and I cannot see anyone else in it.

I have to say that I loved the cinematography of this film.  The colors during the day and during the nights in the street lights were fantastic.  The cars were gorgeous and shiny.  The pace and editing of the film just felt right and to me never seemed to drag or go to fast.  The story kept my attention through the entire film which I really appreciated.

Overall, I’m giving it 5 Stars.

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