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A Better Life

A Better Life

2011
Drama
1h 38m
A gardener in East L.A. struggles to keep his son away from gangs and immigration agents while trying to give his son the opportunities he never had.
Your probable score
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A Better Life

2011
Drama
1h 38m
Your probable score
Avg Percentile 52.89% from 276 total ratings

Ratings & Reviews

(276)
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Rated 05 Feb 2012
69
46th
The modern day Bicycle Thieves works well for an hour but then drags heavily for the last half hour.
Rated 05 Feb 2012
63
46th
There are basically three reactions you can have to this: 1: "Hey, this is just a remake of Bicycle Thieves! Booo!" 2. "Hey, they remade Bicycle Thieves in today's LA. That's clever." In which case you'll probably enjoy it for what it is: a still-relevant story that tugs a bit at the ol' heart strings, adds a few little touches of its own, and doesn't take easy ways out. Or in. 3. "What's Bicycle Thieves?" In which case you have better things to do than reading this.
Rated 15 May 2021
93
87th
The Help wishes it was this movie--both cinematically & as a document of societal injustice. Film bros are going to rant about how it borrows from The Bicycle Thieves by being a social drama concerning a marginalized character exploring a city. Still, Weitz is great at creating a snapshot of the debates that came with Obama's America. Demián Bichir is amazing, and even with an Oscar nomination his performance doesn't get the kudos it deserves. Vastly overlooked and highly recommended.
Rated 23 Feb 2012
50
44th
Not especially bad, not especially good, just solid blah.
Rated 05 Apr 2012
80
83rd
Manipulative? Yeah, maybe, but also undeniably affecting and empathetic, anchored by Bichir's ultra high-quality performance.
Rated 12 Jan 2012
55
36th
It's essentially Bicycle Thieves, except swap out the bike with a pickup truck and the poor Italian with an illegal immigrant. Not bad, not really good. Feels a bit too politically motivated.
Rated 16 Aug 2016
83
81st
Demian Bichir is so good here. This movie really serves him well and treats the audience to a story that might grant a lot of people perspective into what the struggles are for people who come to America seeking what the title suggests; a "better" life.
Rated 02 Jun 2013
80
77th
Wait! This was the mayor of Tijuana in Weeds? Holy shit, who knew he could actually act? What a fantastic film.
Rated 15 Feb 2012
80
78th
Even though it's not a remake of The Bicycle Thieves it shares the general thematic arc with a few more side-plots mixed in. I probably would have been against the similarities going in had I known about them, but they ended up doing a very nice job with it. Demián Bichir steals the show and takes this movie to another level. I seem to rate this higher than most but that's probably because I'm a bleeding heart liberal.
Rated 10 Mar 2012
50
29th
The premise is "borrowed", and that's fine. But Weitz doesn't do anything particularly interesting or emotionally hard-hitting with it.
Rated 03 Oct 2015
65
80th
I kept watching. Maybe it's not exactly like the real world, but A Better Life shows a thing or two about being grateful for what you have. And just because others have it better, it doesn't mean nobody has it worse. Solid performances from the leading characters, although most of the supporting actors weren't that good... 65/100.
Rated 22 Dec 2011
10
5th
Oh lord, I can't believe this piece-of-sh*t-movie made me cry....that's just embarrassing...and Enrique Iglesias wasn't even on the soundtrack. I have no excuse.
Rated 31 Jan 2012
70
72nd
Ladri di autocarri, but in a much different context, adding another problems. Here, they're not just poor, they're also in a country illegally, and the risks for the youngsters can be more dangerous. Interesting, maybe a bit light, but that can also be considered good if you think it's not one of those movies that tries to make you feel sympathy for people just because they're making everything worse every minute. Main actor Demián Bichir deserves a great merit in the success of the movie.
Rated 16 Mar 2012
86
51st
a very enjoyable and poignant film from director weitz. worth seeing for ... 1. demian bichir's performance. 2. the no cop-out ending.......
Rated 05 Aug 2011
25
61st
"A stale but scrupulously structured anecdote, A Better Life seems intended as an eye-opener for the send-'em-back American racist." - Ed Gonzalez
Rated 15 Feb 2012
45
20th
A modern Ladri di Biciclette? Well at least it tries. Do yourself a favour and watch the supperior movie of the two...
Rated 28 Feb 2012
84
51st
A beautiful little gem of a film elevated by strong performances from José Julián and deserved best actor Oscar nominee and Weeds alum Demián Bichir. Lovely direction by Weitz (About a Boy, The Golden Compass, New Moon) and wonderful cinematography from Javier Aguirresarobe (Talk to Her, The Sea Inside, Vicky Cristina Barcelona).
Rated 31 Dec 2011
60
26th
The film's heart is in the right place, and there are several well-done visual compositions. The scene at the rodeo works best to illustrate the culture clash going on within the family, while the regular shots of East Los Angeles serve to show us a world not often presented in the movies. All that said, the film relies far too much on words to express its ideas, especially working hard to build sentiment to such a degree that it becomes off-putting rather than as it should be--affecting.
Rated 29 Dec 2011
65
29th
It's not bad, but it feels like the filmmakers were going for a hard-hitting exposé of life as an illegal immigrant in the U.S. and it's just too fluffy, generic, and stereotypical to be taken THAT seriously. Nice lead performance from Demian Bichir if a bit overstated at times. The acting from the kids was pretty bad.
Rated 18 Feb 2012
85
59th
I have never seen The Bicycle Thief but.....it has been a long time since I have been so emotionally involved in a film. The scene where Carlos hops the fence into the lot had my heart pounding and my hands shaking. Wow. I'm glad Demian Bichir was nominated for an Oscar. It is a deserved nomination. Sadly this film does have other issues, but I was really affected by some of the scenes that come later in the film.
Rated 20 Nov 2012
55
34th
A sincere and well-meaning film with some nice father-son moments but which suffers from resorting to eliciting cheap sympathy especially towards the end.

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