Teaching Children How To Make Tough Decisions

Writer-director Joel Alfonso Vargas’ directorial debut is a very sensitive and observational neorealist Bronx-set family drama. Exploring the struggles, aspirations, fragilities and dreams of a Dominican American family, Vargas announces himself as a filmmaker on the rise. The center of the story belongs to troubled hustler Rico who is trying to make a living but only faces disappointing jobs and missed opportunities. His relationship at home isn’t the best either, since his mother works an intense schedule to make ends meet and to provide for him and his younger sister- who’s also giving her mother some trouble with her inappropriate behavior and walkabouts. When his much younger girlfriend gets pregnant things get tumultuous inside their small apartment. Raw and very touching, Vargas observes these characters’ life-changing decisions with patience and acceptance. Impressively performed and precisely shot with the vibrancy and sounds of the Bronx, this is one remarkable discovery.

Award-winning Turkish filmmaker Fatih Akin’s best film in years is an affecting coming of age true story set at a German Island during the spring of 1945. Both a crowd pleasing adventurous thriller about a dedicated son who seeks to fulfill his mother’s requests, and a tearjerker survivalist tale about hunger, family traditions and fascism, the director marvelously adapts Hark Bohm’s childhood memories, crafting a pleasant character study about the formation of a man. First time actor Jasper Billerbeck is a revelation as Nanning, our 12-year old hero in conflict of identity as he faces a dilemma: obey his mother’s nazi education or build his own personality and values based on what he feels. His performance is the heart and soul of the film, a brave conductor of a fascinating story told through the perspective of innocence loss. Different in style and narrative of all his major hits, Akin reaches a higher note with this singular take on human values and bravery.