Why is sin nombre called that

It impressed judges at this year's Sundance Film Festival so much they awarded it directing and cinematography awards. But even after such an ambitious and successful debut, Fukunaga is not ready to let up and his next project couldn't be more different: a musical with Arcade Fire collaborator Owen Pallett. After all, he said, "If you're just going to do a paint-by-numbers film, then what's the point? Story Highlights "Sin Nombre" opens a window on Mexico's Mara Salvatrucha gangs Cary Fukunaga's debut thriller set against backdrop of immigrant trafficking on trains Fukunaga visited gang members in jail and rode an immigrant train for research Film won directing and cinematography awards at Sundance Film Festival.

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There seems little in Tapachula, Mexico, for boys like Casper other than submit or be killed by the soul-destroying gang culture. But the seduction of belonging is clear as he smiles through tears at those who delivered the blows. When the gang demands an allegiance that Casper ultimately cannot give, a series of events puts him alone, outcast, on the run and clinging to the top of a train headed for the U.

Here his life intersects with Sayra Paulina Gaitan , whose story gets equal time. His deportation has brought them together again.

Resentment and teenage rebellion drive her toward Casper. When they meet in the aftermath of a violent exchange, he sheds his gang name for Willy, the one his mother gave him, and begins to let go of the rest of that world as well.

The director captures well the uncertainty and danger that follow Willy, Sayra and the other travelers everywhere. Some towns they pass through, people run alongside the train and throw them fruit and bread; in others, the crowds come armed with insults and rocks. There are patrols to outwit and for Willy, word of his flight has made it through the gang network ahead of him.

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