Thanks for the memories!

good film but with many flaws

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Director like this would be nicer, who reminds us all that one of our best friends is not only our dogs, but our FFWDS's bottoms, oh my agnostic god! Like a reviewer already said looks like an essay of what not to do in a movie: crappy narration, awful -unpaid maybe?- acting, uneven camera work - i cant do better with a first generation V3-, evidently unintentional zero budget. If this is an outspoken voice of the oppressed, then id go right now and change my name for Hakan! Im like most people here Hispanic & offended, were not this stupid like they portrayed us there and I'm sure our "enemies" the gringos neither. Placido Domingo, Benicio del Toro they're not Mexican, so why they need 2 prove how smart they are telling us that there are 40 countries behind the south border, come on! If the Americans, or the orientals, or the Armenian disappears one day so suddenly it will affect us everyone, no doubt about it. Next time think harder, before doing this waste of people's money & time, hire real actors: Latins doing Latins, Americans idem. Those sketches to connect scenes, why god, why?! And they tried to repair all the damage they've done during 90', with that background music when all Mexicans reappear in the same stupid and brainless way they disappeared

"A Day Without A Mexican" is a great example of how low-budget films in independent cinema can broadcast a message without having to comply to the typical conventions of Hollywood. Sure, there are no big-name actors or actresses prancing across the screen, but that's exactly the point: as a viewer, you are not meant to be distracted from the moral center of the film by celebrities. And what a moral center this film has.Part documentary, part comedy, part social commentary, "A Day Without A Mexican" successfully entertains the audience with seemingly blundering Americans ignorant of the extent to which Latinos contribute to the economy and society of California, while simultaneously calling attention to the alienation and discrimination hurled at this ethnic group on a daily basis. It may seem hokey to some viewers that in the end, after all the Latinos (not just "Mexicans") disappear, they come back and are embraced by everyone who finally realized how important they are to the society. Some of the jokes may also be cheesy and may not garner a titter from the audience, but the main point of the movie is not to knock you out of your seat with uproarious laughter. The pop-up facts enlighten the audience (such as reminding many Americans that those people from Honduras and Guatemala are NOT Mexicans) and add an extra layer to a complex film.All in all, "A Day Without A Mexican" is, so far, an underrated film. Don't focus on how low-budget the production is, focus on the points being made and the situations presented.

Really, it is a good film that seeks to raise questions while supplying some facts. Of course it asks you to take a leap of faith, but doesn't 90% of the films you watch ask the same thing of you? What we should ask is why is there such a virulent backlash against this thoughtful film? This film ranks with Bamboozled as a satire of the continuing racial fears that plague our country and how they are enacted and replicated through the mass media. Like Bamboozled, it also explores the lengths that minorities often go through to suppress their own identity. The film operates as if it was a documentary, and, it that mode, helps a critical viewer to think about the continuing representation of groups as minor or marginalzed in our society.

The politics of the immigration issue aside, this is just a bad piece of film-making. As a pseudo-documentary, it is completely one-sided and this is painfully obvious in the cartoonish, 2D characters portrayed. All the Mexicans are innocent, hard working, unappreciated folk carrying the weight of American society on their backs. All of the Anglos are stupid, racist, lazy and greedy oppressors. This aspect plays well to supporters, but immediately alienates (no pun intended) everyone else. Michael Moore made this same misstep in "Fahrenheit 9/11" when he characterized pre-war Iraq as a happy place of playing children, chocolate rivers and gumdrop smiles. Even those of us against the war know that was far from the case and it turns you off as a viewer. Okay, so beyond the flawed message, it all comes down to the basics. The script is horrible...what is Spanish for "horrible"? The dialog is flat and corny. There is no consistent thread to keep your interest, instead the film just jumps from present to flashback to fantasy, so much so I couldn't keep track of where I was or which character I was trying to follow. And for a film that caught my interest because I kept hearing how "funny" it was,I don't recall laughing once. Production value is another problem - a low budget film can sometimes be obviously low budget and that is the case with this film. Finally, the acting is, minus some exceptions here and there, very poor and that makes it even harder to try and connect with any of the characters. Poor showing, mi amigos, poor showing.