El Norte

1983, 139 minutes, Rated M

Mayan Indian peasants, tired of being thought of as nothing more than "brazos fuertes" ("strong arms", i.e. manual laborers) and organizing in an effort to improve their lot in life, are discovered by the Guatemalan army.

"El Norte" is the touching drama about two Guatemalan teenagers, a brother and a sister. After the army destroys their village and family, the teenagers who just barely escaped the massacre, decide they must flee to "El Norte" ("the North", i.e., the USA). After receiving clandestine help from friends and humorous advice from a veteran immigrant on strategies for travelling through Mexico, they make their way by truck, bus and other means to Los Angeles, where they try to make a new life as young, uneducated, and illegal immigrants.