El Chicano (film)

El Chicano is a 2018 American superhero film directed by Ben Hernandez Bray, who co-wrote the screenplay with Joe Carnahan.[3] It stars Raúl Castillo, Aimee Garcia, and George Lopez.[4] The film has been called the "first Latino superhero movie".[5] It premiered in September 2018 at the Los Angeles Film Festival and was released in the United States on May 3, 2019.

El Chicano
Theatrical release poster
Directed byBen Hernandez Bray
Produced byJoe Carnahan
Written by
  • Ben Hernandez Bray
  • Joe Carnahan
Starring
Edited byJason Hellmann
Production
company
WarParty Films
Distributed byBriarcliff Entertainment
Release date
  • September 22, 2018 (2018-09-22) (LAFF)
  • May 3, 2019 (2019-05-03) (United States)
Running time
107 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$8 million[1]
Box office$1.4 million[2]

Plot

Growing up in East Los Angeles, California Twin brothers Diego and Pedro, along with their friend José hear stories of a legend called El Chicano; a vigilante who defends the streets by eliminating gangsters and other criminals. After dropping off José to his house where he gets beaten by his mother El Chicano shows up and kills his father; a shot caller for his gang.

Years later Diego is now a Cop for LAPD, Pedro is dead, and José is now a gang leader who goes by his street name Shotgun. Diego alongside his partner David investigate a crime scene were Shotgun’s gang has been murdered except for one member; Silent. Diego and David pick him up for questioning but is executed during the drive. Diego goes to Shotgun for answers but he evades the questions and taunting by Diego when bringing up his abuse by his Mother. Diego looks for answers from his brother's old belongings and realizes Pedro was changing wanting revolution and justice for Los Angelas.

Diego goes to his only trusted confidant Father Jesus who mentions Pedro changed after being released from prison and how he got involved with Shotgun and another member Diego has yet to identify. Diego is further surprised when he finds a hidden storage unit Pedro rented and had begun to resurrect the mantle of El Chicano before his death. Diego and his partner later stake out a party held by Shotgun but are ambushed resulting in Deigo being injured and his partner dying. Ordered to recover by Captain Gomez Diego has his mom and girlfriend leave for a while visits Jesus were he takes a Tecpatl and finishes the El Chicano costume ready to take revenge.

Diego tracks down Shotgun at a club and fights his bodyguards. Shotgun escapes Along with Jaws; the other person who knew Pedro and the son of a cartel leader, but Shotgun kills Jaws and pins the blame on El Chicano. El Gallo; Jaws’ father hears the news and swears vengeance on both El Chicano and the Police. A still injured Diego goes after the missing Cops, kills the Cartel members, and El Gallo finally letting him have the chance to go after Shotgun.

Diego chases him to a cemetery where the two fight resulting in Shotgun dying and Diego passing out from blood loss. He awakes having learned his Captain found him first and saved him from being arrested wanting to keep his best cop from being identified as the vigilante. Back in Mexico El Gallo’s wife La Hembra has now become the new leader and swears revenge on El Chicano while back in LA Diego now has accepted the mantle and made peace with his Brother wanting to do him and his home proud by keeping it safe from the Cartel Invaders and all who come.

Cast

Production

The script began as Bray's memoir about the death of his brother, who had been involved with gangs, but Bray turned the memoir into a story about a fictional vigilante named "El Chicano". Carnahan and Bray then completed the script in a four-week collaborative writing session at Carnahan's home near Palm Springs. They pitched the script for El Chicano in 2017, but interested studios expressed concerns about the all-Latino cast, and ultimately passed on the film.[6] The pair found new investors from the oil and gas industry who partnered with Carnahan and Frank Grillo's production company WarParty Films to produce El Chicano.[1] The film was mostly shot in Calgary.[3] Following the film's premiere at the LA Film Festival, Briarcliff Entertainment acquired U.S. distribution rights.[1]

Reception

Critical response

As of August 2020, the film holds an approval rating of 38% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, based on 24 reviews by critics with an average rating of 4.56/10. The website's critic consensus reads: "El Chicano represents a step forward for representation in superhero cinema -- unfortunately, its clichéd story is nothing more than ordinary."[7] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 46 out of 100, based on reviews by 13 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[8]

The Hollywood Reporter praised the cast, including Castillo's "charismatic performance in the lead role" and the "vivid impressions" left by Marlene Forte and Aimee Garcia.[3] The Los Angeles Times positively noted the more inclusive take on "Hollywood cop movies from the ’80s, when masculinity came only in a macho shade", but also criticized the film's portrayal of Mexican nationals as "demonized, criminal, carnage-friendly, nationalist invaders".[9] Writing for TheWrap, critic Monica Castillo similarly drew attention to the "fear-mongering cartel tropes" that failed to "undo the damage of hateful rhetoric aimed at Latin American people".[10] In discussing the film's violence, the San Francisco Chronicle observed that "these blurry, hurried scenes are among the most frustrating elements in a largely disappointing movie",[4] while The New York Times noted that its "political and thematic purpose" was unclear.[11]

Accolades
  • Best Feature Film, Maryland International Film Festival[5]

References
  1. Fleming Jr., Mike (October 11, 2018). "Briarcliff Lands U.S. Rights To 'El Chicano', First Latino Superhero Pic With All-Hispanic Cast". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  2. "El Chicano (2019)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  3. Scheck, Frank (May 1, 2019). "'El Chicano': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  4. Meyer, Carla (May 1, 2019). "Review: 'El Chicano' a frustrating framing of Latino vigilante". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  5. Morgan, Claire (May 1, 2019). "Sacramento's Joe Carnahan helps deliver first Latino superhero movie, 'El Chicano'". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  6. Buckley, Cara (May 1, 2019). "An All-Latino Cast? Hollywood Passed, but 'El Chicano' Is Coming". The New York Times. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  7. "El Chicano (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
  8. "El Chicano (2019) reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  9. Aguilar, Carlos (May 2, 2019). "Review: Superhero flick 'El Chicano,' starring Raúl Castillo, has a disturbing undercurrent". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  10. Castillo, Monica (May 3, 2019). "'El Chicano' Film Review: Well-Intentioned Latino Superhero Movie Gets More Wrong Than Right". TheWrap. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  11. Bugbee, Teo (May 1, 2019). "'El Chicano' Review: Freeing East Los Angeles With Bloodshed". The New York Times. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
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