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The Importance Of Family In Nava's Film

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On April 10, 1949 a phenomenal Intercultural film maker is born, his name is Gregory James Nava. Nava is born in San Diego, a city that is right next to the border between the United States, and Mexico. Due to Nava’s close proximity to the border this influences his films like El Norte, Mi Familia, and Selena. Nava would later attend the University of Los Angeles’s film school, and would obtain a Masters of Arts. Because of his background Nava’s films mostly focus on the Latinos, and Hispanics. Through his films Nava gives Latinos, and Hispanics a voice. Nava focuses on the families in his films in a positive matter to show the importance of family in Latino, and Hispanic culture. Through the Latino, and Hispanic characters in his films Nava …show more content…

As Nava states with an interview with Roger Ebert "I think Latinos have always had an innate understanding of the importance of family," Nava told me. "All the great novels from Latin America - One Hundred Years of Solitude, House of Spirits - they're always family stories that take place over generations. I wanted to make a movie in which the family itself is the protagonist.” Nava states that he wants to make a film about Latino family and he did with the films El Norte, Mi Familia, and Selena. The film El Norte tells the story of a distraught brother, and sister when their family is taken away from them by the Guatemalan army. Throughout the film the brother and sister pair never leave one another side as they travel to the United States. When a white lady offers Enrique a job as a foreman in Chicago, and he cannot take the job because he is unable to take his sister Rosa with him. Enrique decides to stay with his sister because she would have done the same. “Rosa and Enrique may never emerge as anything more than simple, decent innocents, but Mr. Nava never allows them to become anything less. He presents their story in terms that are simple but far-reaching, so that its cultural and political implications are apparent and so that its humanity is always felt.” Janet Maslin says from the New York

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