La Mission (film)

Last updated

La Mission
La mission poster.jpg
Film poster
Directed byPeter Bratt
Written byPeter Bratt
Produced by Benjamin Bratt
Peter Bratt
Alpita Patel
StarringBenjamin Bratt
Jeremy Ray Valdez
Max Rosenak
Erika Alexander
Jesse Borrego
Cinematography Hiro Narita
Edited byStan Webb
Music byMark Kilian
Distributed byGlobal Cinema Distribution
Release dates
  • January 19, 2009 (2009-01-19)(Sundance)
  • April 9, 2010 (2010-04-09)(United States)
Running time
117 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

La Mission is a 2009 drama film starring Benjamin Bratt and Jeremy Ray Valdez. It is written and directed by Peter Bratt (Benjamin's brother). [1] The film premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and screened at various festivals, including the San Francisco International Film Festival and the Palm Springs International Film Festival. It received a limited release beginning April 9, 2010.

Contents

Premise

Che Rivera is a reformed inmate living in the Mission District of San Francisco. A recovering alcoholic and bus driver by day, Che is respected throughout the Mission barrio for his masculinity and toughness. His hobby of building beautiful lowrider cars also makes him a beloved figure in the community. Che has raised his only son Jesse, a studious teenager, on his own since the death of his wife. Che faces challenges to his personal values when he discovers Jesse is gay.

Cast

Production

Writer-director Peter Bratt said among the challenging aspects of the film's production was raising financing, as he and brother Benjamin were told "more than a few times that 'the gay thing' had already been done and was now passe," referring to films and TV shows like Brokeback Mountain and Will & Grace . [2] "In short order, what these people were saying was that the white experience is the universal one. When we tried to explain how much of a social taboo homosexuality remains in many communities of color, the reaction was often one of disbelief," said Bratt. [2] The brothers could also not get support from the Latino and Native American communities, where homosexuality is also still considered taboo. [2]

Bratt considered filming the movie in New Mexico, where tax rebates allow for productions to be filmed relatively inexpensively. He ultimately settled on San Francisco's Mission District, saying, "In my mind it's one of the most unique American neighborhoods in the country and it has a dynamic that I don't think you can duplicate anywhere else. And the character of the neighborhood kind of informs the story." [3]

The film was shot in 26 days. [2]

Environmental impact

Several scenes in the movie make subtle hints at environmentally friendly themes, such as converting lowriders to run on biodiesel. [4] The film was also shot on an eco-friendly movie set, one of the first of its kind in San Francisco. [4] The cast and crew eliminated the use of water bottles and used composting on set, while the art department allowed for green product placement in the film. [4] La Mission subsequently earned an Environmental Media Association (EMA) Green Seal Award in 2009 as the result of their production practices. [4]

Release

Film festivals

The film premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. [5] It went on to play the festival circuit and was the opening night film at Outfest LA, [6] [7] the New York International Latino Film Festival, [8] San Francisco International Film Festival, [9] and the Artivist Film Festival. [10] It also screened at the Independent Film Festival Boston, [11] Austin Film Festival, [12] Philadelphia QFest, [13] American Indian Film Festival, and the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival. [14]

Theatrical

The film opened on April 9, 2010, in New York City and Los Angeles and on April 16 in San Francisco. [4] The DVD was released on August 10, 2010. [1] A soundtrack, Songs of La Mission, was released by Round Whirled Records. [15]

Reception

Critic Roger Ebert gave the film 2½ stars out of 4, writing the "story is told earnestly and with some force" and the filmmakers' "hearts are in the right place, but the film tries to say too many things for its running time." [16] Ebert noted "La Mission is forthright in avoiding easy answers", but he also felt the screenplay needed to give the characters more complexity. [16] In contrast, James Greenberg of The Hollywood Reporter opined the Bratt brothers "capture the conflicts of the Latino community in which they were raised." [17] Greenberg added the film is "an honest attempt to portray the destructiveness of violence in the Latino community." [17]

In a positive review for The Austin Chronicle , Marjorie Baumgarten wrote the "film oozes with location detail and a knowing sense of Latino culture." [12] Baumgarten praised Benjamin Bratt's acting and added, "Peter Bratt’s script occasionally wallows in its melodramatic aspects but is, on the whole, an empathetic portrait of a man who struggles to work past his gut reactions." [12] Latino media credited the film as being both authentic and genuine to various aspects of Latino American cultures. [1]

Awards and nominations

In 2010, La Mission received three Imagen Awards in the categories of Best Feature Film, Best Actor for Benjamin Bratt, and Best Supporting Actor for Jeremy Ray Valdez. [18]

At the 2011 GLAAD Media Awards, La Mission was nominated for Outstanding Film - Limited Release. [19] It was also nominated for a Dorian Award for LGBTQ Film of the Year. [20]

La Mission also received the award for International Human Rights - Best Feature at the Artivist Film Festival, [21] and the Audience Award at the OUT Film Festival Connecticut. [22] It received an Estela Award from the National Association of Latino Producers. [23]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benjamin Bratt</span> American actor (born 1963)

Benjamin Bratt is an American actor. He is known for playing Paco Aguilar in Blood In Blood Out. He had supporting film roles in the 1990s in Demolition Man (1993), Clear and Present Danger (1994), and The River Wild (1994). From 1995 to 1999, he starred as Detective Reynaldo Curtis on the NBC drama series Law & Order.

The Mission District, commonly known as the Mission, is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California. One of the oldest neighborhoods in San Francisco, the Mission District's name is derived from Mission San Francisco de Asís, built in 1776 by the Spanish. The Mission is historically one of the most notable centers of the city's Chicano/Mexican-American community.

<i>The Motorcycle Diaries</i> (film) 2004 film by Walter Salles

The Motorcycle Diaries is a 2004 biographical film about the journey and written memoir of 23-year-old Che Guevara, who would some years later become internationally known as a Marxist guerrilla leader and revolutionary. The film recounts the 1952 expedition, initially by motorcycle, across South America by Guevara and his friend Alberto Granado. As well as being a road movie, the film is a coming-of-age film; as the adventure, initially centered on youthful hedonism, unfolds, Guevara discovers himself transformed by his observations on the life of the impoverished indigenous peasantry. Through the characters they encounter on their continental trek, Guevara and Granado witness first hand the injustices that the destitute face and are exposed to people and social classes they would have never encountered otherwise. To their surprise, the road presents to them both a genuine and captivating picture of Latin American identity. As a result, the trip also plants the initial seed of radicalization within Guevara, who would later challenge the continent's endemic economic inequalities and political repression.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Talisa Soto</span> American actress and model

Talisa Soto is an American actress and model. She is known for portraying Bond girl Lupe Lamora in the 1989 James Bond film Licence to Kill, and as Kitana in the 1995 fantasy action film Mortal Kombat and its 1997 sequel Mortal Kombat Annihilation. Prior to her acting career, Soto worked as a model, appearing in magazines such as Mademoiselle, Glamour and Elle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luis Valdez</span> American writer and director

Luis Miguel Valdez is an American playwright, screenwriter, film director and actor. Regarded as the father of Chicano film and playwriting, Valdez is best known for his play Zoot Suit, his movie La Bamba, and his creation of El Teatro Campesino. A pioneer in the Chicano Movement, Valdez broadened the scope of theatre and arts of the Chicano community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jenni Olson</span> American filmmaker (born 1962)

Jenni Olson is a writer, archivist, historian, consultant, and non-fiction filmmaker based in Berkeley, California. She co-founded the pioneering LGBT website PlanetOut.com. Her two feature-length essay films — The Joy of Life (2005) and The Royal Road (2015) — premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Her work as an experimental filmmaker and her expansive personal collection of LGBTQ film prints and memorabilia were acquired in April 2020 by the Harvard Film Archive, and her reflection on the last 30 years of LGBT film history was published as a chapter in The Oxford Handbook of Queer Cinema from Oxford University Press in 2021. In 2020, she was named to the Out Magazine Out 100 list. In 2021, she was recognized with the prestigious Special TEDDY Award at the Berlin Film Festival. She also campaigned to have a barrier erected on the Golden Gate Bridge to prevent suicides.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jesse Borrego</span> American actor

Jesse Borrego is an American actor best known for his roles as Cruz Candelaria in Blood In Blood Out, Jesse V. Velasquez in Fame, Gael Ortega in 24, and George King in Dexter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fina Torres</span>

Fina Torres is a Venezuelan film director and screenwriter. She became internationally recognized after winning the la Caméra d'Or award at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival with her directorial debut film, Oriana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Ortiz</span> American actor (born 1968)

John Augustin Ortiz is an American actor. He is known for his antagonist role as Arturo Braga in Fast & Furious (2009) and Fast & Furious 6 (2013), and Clyde in Jack Goes Boating (2010), which earned him a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor. He is also an artistic director/co-founder of the LAByrinth Theater Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeffrey Schwarz</span> American filmmaker

Jeffrey Schwarz is an American Emmy Award-winning film producer, director, and editor. He is known for an extensive body of documentary work including Commitment to Life, Boulevard! A Hollywood Story, The Fabulous Allan Carr, Tab Hunter Confidential, I Am Divine, Vito, Wrangler: Anatomy of an Icon and Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeremy Ray Valdez</span> American actor and musician (born 1980)

Jeremy Ray Valdez is an American actor and musician. He won the 2010 Imagen Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Feature Film for his role in La Mission.

<i>Trucker</i> (film) 2008 American film

Trucker is a 2008 independent drama film by Plum Pictures written and directed by James Mottern, and produced by Scott Hanson, Galt Niederhoffer, Celine Rattray and Daniela Taplin Lundberg. It stars Michelle Monaghan, Nathan Fillion and Benjamin Bratt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Artivist Film Festival & Awards</span> International film festival and awards ceremony

The Artivist Film Festival & Awards is an international film festival and awards ceremony dedicated to recognizing activist efforts of filmmakers, specifically in the areas of human rights, child advocacy, environmental preservation, and animal rights.

<i>Edie & Thea: A Very Long Engagement</i> 2009 American documentary film

Edie & Thea: A Very Long Engagement is a 2009 American documentary film directed and produced by Susan Muska and Gréta Ólafsdóttir for their company Bless Bless Productions, in association with Sundance Channel. The film tells the story of the long-term lesbian relationship between Edie Windsor and Thea Spyer, including their respective childhoods, their meeting in 1963, their lives and careers in New York City, Thea's diagnosis with multiple sclerosis and Edie's care for her partner, and their wedding in Toronto, Canada, in May 2007, because gay marriage was not then legal in their home state of New York.

<i>Cruel and Unusual</i> (2006 film) 2006 American film

Cruel and Unusual is a 2006 American documentary film directed and produced by Janet Baus, Dan Hunt and Reid Williams about the experiences of transgender women in the United States prison system. It was screened on television as Cruel and Unusual: Transgender Women in Prison.

Aurora Guerrero is a writer-director from California.

<i>Big Gay Love</i> 2013 American film

Big Gay Love is a 2013 American comedy film written and directed by Ringo Le and produced by Quentin Lee and Marisa Le. The story centers on Bob, an overweight gay man who overcomes discrimination and insecurity based on his looks to find love in the form of a chef named Andy.

Cecilio "Cece" Asuncion is a Filipino-American director, producer, filmmaker and executive. He is the founder, owner and director of Slay Model Management in Los Angeles.

<i>Southwest of Salem: The Story of the San Antonio Four</i> 2016 American film

Southwest of Salem: The Story of the San Antonio Four is a 2016 documentary directed by Deborah Esquenazi and produced by Sam Tabet about the persecution of four Latina lesbians in 1997 and 1998 who allegedly gang-raped two young girls. The story investigates the wrongful convictions of Elizabeth Ramirez, Cassandra Rivera, Kristie Mayhugh, and Anna Vasquez in the midst of the Satanic Panic witch-hunt era of the 1980s and 1990s.

Rain Valdez is an American actress, writer, and producer who rose to prominence with her award-winning short film, Ryans. She stars in the web series Razor Tongue, which she created and which has earned her a Primetime Emmy nomination in Outstanding Actress in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "La Mission Movie Review & Trailer". latinrapper.com. Archived from the original on January 27, 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Peter Bratt, "La Mission": Patriarch, Homosexual and Change". IndieWire . January 4, 2009. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  3. ↑ Moore, Omar P.L. (January 12, 2009). "The Mission of Peter Bratt". The Popcorn Reel. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Selman, Lauren (June 9, 2010). "La Mission Opening Weekend". HuffPost. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  5. ↑ Stein, Ruthe (January 16, 2009). "'La Mission' directed, acted by Bay Area Bratts". San Francisco Chronicle . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  6. ↑ Kay, Jeremy (June 2, 2009). "La Mission, Dare bookend LA Outfest 2009". Screen Daily. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  7. ↑ King, Susan (July 9, 2009). "Outfest lands at the Orpheum". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Dolores". USC Cinematic Arts | School of Cinematic Arts Events. September 7, 2017. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  9. ↑ "La Mission (2009) Awards & Festivals". MUBI . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  10. ↑ "La Mission Opens the 6th Artivist Film Festival Dec. 1, Festival Dates and Program Announced". PR Web. October 22, 2009. Archived from the original on November 8, 2009. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  11. ↑ "Independent Film Festival Boston 2009". Boston Globe . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  12. 1 2 3 Baumgarten, Marjorie (October 29, 2009). "Austin Film Festival: 'La MISSION'". The Austin Chronicle . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  13. ↑ "QFest Films For Guys". phillygaycalendar.com. July 8, 2010. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival Unveils its 2009 Lineup". www.filmfestivals.com. October 5, 2009. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  15. ↑ "la Mission". Round Whirled Records. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved October 31, 2011.
  16. 1 2 Ebert, Roger (July 7, 2010). "He loves his son less than his prejudices". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  17. 1 2 Greenberg, James (January 26, 2009). "Film Review: La Mission". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on July 5, 2009. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  18. ↑ "Winners of 25th Annual Imagen Awards Announced". Imagen Foundation. August 15, 2010. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  19. ↑ "GLAAD Media Awards Nominees 2011". GLAAD . Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  20. ↑ "Award Watch 2011 :: the Dorians revealed". Edge Media Network. January 20, 2011. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  21. ↑ "6th Artivist Film Festival Announces Artivist Award Winning Films for 2009". PR Web. November 24, 2009. Archived from the original on December 17, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  22. ↑ "Winners of 23rd Connecticut Gay & Lesbian Film Festival Awards Announced" (PDF). OUT Film CT. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  23. ↑ "Director Peter Bratt and Sundance Film, 'La Mission,' Come to Campus". sandiego.edu. May 19, 2011. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.