C?sar Ch?vez is perhaps the most famous Mexican-American civil rights activist in American history, but, sadly, many Americans know little about him. Ch?vez's movement to organize farm laborers in California during the 1960s and 1970s is an often-overlooked facet of American history. The activist's story, however, hits the big screen with new film Cesar Chavez," directed by Diego Luna. The Mexican actor-turned-director - known for his roles in "Y Tu Mam? Tambi?n" (2001) and "Milk" (2008) - has unfortunately fallen short in his directorial debut. This biopic, the first English-language film he has directed, ultimately disappoints. "Cesar Chavez" fails to muster the same charisma and passion the civil rights activist so clearly possessed.
The film follows Ch?vez (Michael Pe?a) as he moves his family from Los Angeles to agriculture-oriented Delano, Calif. where he organizes strikes (or "huelgas" in Spanish) and eventually forms the National Farm Workers Association. Shaky camera work interspersed with black and white historical footage gives the movie a documentary-like quality, and sweeping shots of grape vineyards provide a nice aesthetic. However, the film's reliance on cliche combined with a rushed timeline, leave the viewer with a shallow portrait of Ch?vez.
The movie's central conflict between farmworkers and landowners is rather superficial and makes the laborers' struggles seem flat. Landowners are boiled down to villainous, racist white men, while farmworkers are innocent victims. It is clear these laborers want rights their bosses wish to deny them, but the viewer never fully understands the conflict in detail. The portrayal lacks complexity, and lapses into an oversimplification of the farmworkers' rights movement. It is also difficult to pinpoint the root of Ch?vez's passion for farmworker's rights. The film rushes into the activist's efforts in Delano, and this clumsy introduction is confusing. It is clear Luna wants to portray Ch?vez as a hero, but that portrayal is banal at best. At no point is there doubt about Ch?vez's greatness
