Clemente

This Saturday the grand premiere of the independent San Antonio film Clemente brought together hundreds of moviegoers, activists, and students at Trinity University’s Laurie Auditorium to experience and discuss a hot topic that was very close to home for many in the audience and the present cast and crew: Mexico-U.S. immigration.

The tone of the evening was alternately somber and celebratory, given the nature of the movie’s subject matter as well as its favorable reception. Clemente tells the story of the titular character, a Mexican wrestler or luchador, played by actor Jorge Jimenez, who leaves his old life behind when he illegally crosses the Rio Grande in hopes of starting a job and a family in America. He arrives safely and marries a woman (played by local actress Kristel Lara) and has a daughter (San Antonio native Mariana Wachter in her first film role), but over the typical scenes of familial bonding and drama that follow, the specter of deportation looms continuously as Clemente waits in seemingly endless limbo for his citizenship papers to clear. When the INS catches and deports him, he makes another attempt to cross the border, and his harrowing journey back to his new home vividly illustrates the dangers and motivations involved for the many people who brave this resolve-testing odyssey. Despite the onscreen tragedies, there are many surprisingly humorous moments as well.

The film is presented in Spanish with English subtitles, and marks the second feature for local director Pablo Véliz. His debut effort, La Tragedia de Macario, which he made at age 22 and which also explores the plight of illegal aliens, was selected for screening at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival.

Drew Mayer-Oaks of the San Antonio Film Commission introduced the movie, and a question and answer session featuring a panel of Trinity professors followed the show. During this, Véliz revealed that his aforementioned first film has recently been picked up for distribution by a production company in Los Angeles, whom he has just signed a one-year/five-picture deal.

Said Véliz of his film’s intended message, “We find it hard to imagine now that just fifty years ago, some people had to drink at different water fountains. We look back on that today and think its crazy. But here’s a situation where people are dying every day, and no one seems to notice. I hope that, fifty years from now, our kids won’t have to worry about this.”

While the film stops short of proposing any solutions to the obviously complex issue of immigration, it succeeds in movingly depicting the life-threatening struggle which many families endure just for the opportunity to call the United States their home.

-Andy Gately, 2006