El Norte

From the Collection

After their family is murdered by the government in a massacre during the Guatemalan Civil War, Indigenous siblings Rosa and Enrique flee up “Norte” to the United States for a chance at survival. When they arrive, they find life in the U.S. is not what they had hoped for.

An independent film pioneer, Gregory Nava developed El Norte at the first Sundance Institute Directors Lab in 1981. Its lyrical intensity and epic quality (Roger Ebert called it “Grapes of Wrath for our time”) stems from its blend of social and dream realism and its captivating performances. As timely as ever, it advances a politics of compassion while depicting two Central American refugees fleeing political violence. Their harrowing journey through Mexico to the U.S. delivers them into an America they’ve seen only in magazines. With humanity and humor, it portrays a community of undocumented workers struggling to find identity and a sense of home.

Oscar-nominated for Best Original Screenplay, El Norte was restored in 2017 by the Academy Film Archive, supported in part by the Getty Foundation. Special thanks to Lionsgate Films.

Run time: 141 minutes