Entre Nos – DVD Review

Film, Reviews



One might argue that Entre Nos, a 2009 immigration drama, was a vanity project for co-writer, co-director and star Paola Mendoza.

From a script loosely based on her own childhood, Mendoza cut herself a nice big slice of acting casserole with the role of Mariana, a Colombian immigrant who is left homeless in New York after her husband splits for Miami and leaves her and her two children without any money or direction.

Unlike most vanity projects, though, Entre Nos shines as a portrait of true talent — letting Mendoza and her co-writer and co-director Gloria La Morte craft an engaging story that avoids succumbing to self-indulgent melodrama.

Don’t get me wrong. There is plenty of melodrama to be found in Entre Nos, but trust me when I say it’s the good kind — the kind that wins awards or at least makes engaging Kleenex-clutching viewing.

Soon after Mariana followed her husband to New York, he up and leaves his family — stranding the woman and her two young children with few options and fewer resources. After an unsuccessful attempt to sell homemade empanadas on the streets of New York, Mariana slowly starts to put herself on her own two feet — managing to make a few bucks every day by picking through garbage for aluminum cans she can recycle.

Unfortunately, this newfound independence is too little, too late and Mariana and her children are thrown out into the street due to unpaid rent.

While the film begins as an inspirational story of a fish-out-of-water overcoming obstacles, things turn dark when Mariana, forced to live on the streets with her children, discovers she is pregnant — one last gift from her deadbeat husband.

Bad becomes worse when Mariana must decide if she wants to keep the baby — her decision running the risk of putting her family in danger of falling apart once and for all.

The film is told almost entirely in Spanish, as Mariana is overwhelmed by her new home — unable to communicate with those that could offer her assistance. Sebastian Villada Lopez plays Mariana’s 10-year-old son Gabriel. With some rudimentary grasp of English, Gabriel quickly steps up to support his mother — filling the void his father left when he abandoned his family. For such a young actor, Lopez does an admirable job breathing life into his character.

Gabriel is torn between his love for his mother and his desire for a better life. When his family is thrown into the streets, he looses everything — his clothes, his toys and his friends. You can see a real pain cast upon the young actor’s face as his feelings towards his mother tumble from love to frustration and back again.

Mendoza is flat-out amazing in her role as Mariana. Through her emotive expressions and delivery, Mendoza takes audiences along on every triumph and tragedy her character experiences.

The film goes into some really dark territory and audiences will struggle to follow along without needing to stop the film, take a cold shower and call their mother — but, in the end, it will be worth it.

Entre Nos is not a perfect film. Some pacing issues in the second act and a rushed finale leave a bit of an underwhelming aftertaste in audiences’ mouths. Fortunately, the positives outweigh the negatives and Entre Nos remains recommended viewing — especially for any with an interest in the immigration debate currently sweeping America.

Mariana and her family struggle to eke out an existence in America. More often than not, they are regulated to invisible people — with no more of an impact on the economy or social ladder than a pack of rats would have. It is hard to watch Entre Nos and not empathize with the sea of faces currently in a similar situation within American borders.

The film is presented in 1:78:1 widescreen aspect ratio with stereo sound in Spanish with English subtitles. Despite the film’s small budget, the film looks and sounds great.

Director’s Commentary

A 14-minute Behind the Scenes featurette

A 5-minute How to Make Empandas hosted by Mendoza and her co-director Gloria La Morte

A 2-minute PSA in which Mendoza talks about immigration reform

Still Standing, an 8-minute short documentary by Mendoza about Hurricane Katrina’s effects on her family

Theatrical Trailer for Entre Nos

Despite its structural weaknesses, I still feel obligated to recommend Entre Nos based on its outstanding performances and important message. There is a whole sub-genre of Spanish-language films based around immigrants being dicked around and Entre Nos is one of the finer entries into this category that I’ve seen. If you can put aside any nitpicky attitudes and allow yourself to get swept away in the golden shower of human emotions on display, I can guarantee you’ll enjoy Entre Nos.


IndiePix presents Entre Nos. Directed by: Paula Mendoza and Gloria La Morte. Starring: Paola Mendoza, Sebastian Villada Lopez and Laura Montana Cortez. Written by: Paula Mendoza and Gloria La Morte. Running time: 82 minutes. Rating: N/A. Released on DVD: July 20, 2010.



Robert Saucedo is an avid movie watcher with seriously poor sleeping habits. The Mikey from Life cereal of film fans, Robert will watch just about anything — good, bad or ugly. He has written about film for newspapers, radio and online for the last 10 years. This has taken a toll on his sanity — of that you can be sure. Follow him on Twitter at @robsaucedo2500.