Reviewed by Justin Bateman
Stars Edgar Flores, Kristyan Ferrer, Tenoch Huerta Mejía, Paulina Gaitán | Written by Cary Fukunaga
UK certification 15 | UK RRP £24.99 | DVD Region 2 | Runtime 95 minutes | Directed by Cary Fukunaga
El Casper (Flores) initiates his young friend Smiley (Ferrer) into his gang while hiding his girlfriend from his fellow gang members. The Mexican underworld is short on patience and long on grudges, something Smiley is about to discover.
Meanwhile, in neighbouring Honduras, Sayra (Gaitán) has been reunited with her estranged father and uncle and the three of them plan to stow away on a train to find a better life in the United States. But when Lil’ Mago (Mejía) takes Casper and Smiley on a mission to rob the stowaways, all of their lives are changed irrevocably.
In Sin Nombre, Cary Fukunaga has created a wholly believable world in which respect and honour must be earned and life is frighteningly cheap. Violence occurs with alarming regularity and without warning, while the inhabitants live in fear, or in the case of Sayra, in hope. Finding a balance between realism and that hope is the challenge, not to mention staying alive in a hugely hostile environment.
Despite the dangers inherent in both gangland Mexico and the journey of an illegal immigrant, it is at times also a strikingly beautiful place, even if the opportunities to notice them are fleeting. This is a beautifully shot film and Fukunaga captures the dirty, dusty heat of Central America. The incidental music adds another layer of realism to proceedings but it is the central performances which elevate it above the normal gangster flick with both Flores and Gaitán showing great range in an understated way.
Part aspirational road movie and part gangster thriller, Sin Nombre is gripping, moving, uncompromisingly brutal and frequently shocking but has considerable heart and quite simply is terrific.
EXTRAS Deleted scenes and a commentary from producer Amy Kaufman and director Cory Fukunaga.