Tag: Daniel Meisel


All She Can

June 9th, 2011 — 7:42pm

****

All She Can (previously named Benavides Born) –sp  When a movie can target a contemporary social issue in human terms with a fresh approach, it deserves attention. Young people growing up in South Texas, despite many of their families having lived there for several generations, have very few options for breaking out of poverty and achieving the American dream. Husband and wife filmmakers Amy Wendel and Daniel Meisel  looking to write their screenplay and make their first feature film were drawn to this area and wanted to tell this story. They spent a great deal of time in and around Benavides Texas where they came to understand the plight of a number of young people in this community. The main character of their screenplay is Luz (Corina Calderon) a high school senior and a competitive weight lifter who sees the possibility of winning the state championship as the road to a college scholarship which will pay for her college education. In reality, other sports provide the more likely avenue for college scholarships although the introduction of this mostly unknown high school competition is part of the attraction and fascination of this movie. In Texas the top 8% of any high school class is accepted to the University of Texas but they have to come up with the money to pay for tuition. Perhaps this is why this film also showed the friendly military recruiters in the halls of the high school and also why a disproportionate number of our combat soldiers come from rural areas such as the one shown in this film. This also accounts for the desperation that we see in Luz and the extremes to which she is willing to go to win her weight lifting championship and achieve her goal of getting a college education. This is not your typical “ Rockyesk “ movie where the hero or heroine is shown delivering their triumph in the end. In fact, despite the difficulty and hardships of the struggling high school students, the film reminds us that this is nothing compared to the desperation of the people risking their lives and the lives of their children as they sneak across the border. This determination becomes the inspiration of the main character and of this movie. This film will touch your emotions as well as educate you about some painful realities in this country. It merited being selected for the Sundance Film Festival this year and we highly recommend it.

Comment » | 4 Stars, Drama

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