One of the films being considered for an Oscar in this Sunday’s Academy Awards ceremony has an unlikely hero, an immigrant gardener working in Los Angeles. In “A Better Life,” Mexican actor Demián Bichir plays Carlos Galindo, an undocumented immigrant whose lack of legal status eventually thwarts the ambitions he has for himself and his teenage son.
The film provides an intimate glimpse into the world of the people who keep L.A.’s lawns mowed and homes painted, and when work is scarce, sometimes seek work as day laborers on street corners, as Carlos does. And when the truck that Carlos buys, hoping to own his own landscaping business, gets stolen, it provides a window into what it’s like to live underground, too afraid to call police to report a crime for fear of deportation.
“A Better Life” has earned stellar reviews from critics and a Best Actor nomination for Bichir. But what do the people that he portrays onscreen think of it? This week, at a national conference of day laborers in Los Angeles, the film was screened before an audience of men much like Carlos Galindo: carpenters, roofers, gardeners and others who work as day laborers, most of them immigrants from Mexico and Central America, some with papers and some without.
Offering his take on the film in this Q&A is Hugo Villatoro, 59, a day laborer from Guatemala who has lived seven years in the United States. Like Carlos, he’s undocumented, although he doesn’t fear coming forward. Villatoro was one of several Southern California day laborers involved in a lawsuit challenging the city of Redondo Beach on an ordinance that would have prohibited them from soliciting work on the street; the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in their favor this week. He works mostly in construction and roofing, but will take a landscaping gig when it comes.
The interview is translated from Spanish. (And warning, there is a spoiler.)
M-A: How did you relate to this movie? Was it a realistic portrayal?
Hugo: Yes, it was realistic. I could especially relate to the feelings of the younger protagonist, the boy, which had a big impact on me because a year and a half ago, one of my sons was coming here, my youngest son, and he got lost in the desert. That had a huge impact on me. I didn’t know what had happened, I only heard that he’d gotten lost, and nobody told me why. I started trying to find him. People got me phone numbers to consulates, and that was how I found him. He was lost in the desert and thank God, days had gone by when he came out onto a street. And it was there, thank God, that immigration found him.
So it had a big impact on me watching the film when the young man said goodbye to his father, when his father was being was deported, and he stayed behind. It really affected me, because this is something I’ve lived.
M-A: When Carlos’ truck gets stolen, he can’t simply call the police to report the crime. What is it like not being able to do things like this?
Hugo: Well, for example, we went to work for a (man) and he owed me $1,000. Another friend, he owed him $1,600, and another was owed $1,800. We took him to court, but there were not enough elements there – he didn’t have a contractor’s license – for us to be able to make him pay us that money.
M-A: You’re not the typical case.
Hugo: No, many people don’t do that out of fear….I’m not afraid, but many others have a great deal of fear. That is what happens for many people. For example, on my corner, there are up to 100 or 150 day laborers (who solicit work there), and only three of us are here at this conference. It’s because of that same fear, saying no, immigration might come, they might point the finger at us. But it’s not like that.
M-A: How does Carlos, the hero of the film, represent the ambitions of day laborers and others who come to this country seeking work? When he buys his truck, he buys it with the hope that he can better provide for his son. Can you relate?
Hugo: He represents the dream that we all carry with us. In my case, I know that if I do anything, I am going to do it for my children. At this age, I may not have many years left, but if I can do something positive, I will do it for them. Last night watching the film we saw how he bought his truck, with his son in mind. But he came with that objective, as we all do. We come with hopes of buying a car, having a house, having a little bit of land. That is the dream that we bring with us.
And to create a better life for ourselves while we are here, because the truth is that there is a better life here than in our countries. This is a powerful country. I know that work now is very slow, but if we compare it with our countries, it’s still better here. Whatever it may be like here, here you find everything. Nobody here is barefoot. Here, everyone has on good shoes, good clothes.
