With East L.A. his Kansas and Tijuana his land of Oz, Mexican American Cheech Marin is a victim of assumption as he is arrested in an immigration raid and wrongfully deported. His journey home has him trying several times to sneak back across the border, meeting up with assorted weirdos and finding a bit of romance. He's a good guy just trying to get home, so it's easy to root for him, and obviously as he helps out others in need and befriends a young lady from El Salvador, a sweetness takes over the film that really wallops the impact.
Then there's his cousin Paul Rodriguez, visiting from Mexico, who doesn't speak a lick of English, getting to the spot where Marin was to meet him, stuck in the house by himself while Marin's mother is away as well. every time the phone rings and he hears the answering machine, he thinks it's the picture of Jesus on the wall speaking to him and at one point even brings him a can of beer. Irreverent for sure, but very funny.
The film takes serious issues (illegal immigration and xenophobia) and makes them entertaining because it presents them in a way that is entertaining yet filled with heart. You get to see the various American hopefuls in a more positive light, yet the film isn't beating you over the head with liberal propaganda. Marin teaching some Chinese men some Spanglish slang is very funny, as is the neighborhood reactions to the sexy lady in the green dress in the opening sequence. Quite an uplifting surprise, one that Cheech can truly be proud of as a modern classic comedy.
Then there's his cousin Paul Rodriguez, visiting from Mexico, who doesn't speak a lick of English, getting to the spot where Marin was to meet him, stuck in the house by himself while Marin's mother is away as well. every time the phone rings and he hears the answering machine, he thinks it's the picture of Jesus on the wall speaking to him and at one point even brings him a can of beer. Irreverent for sure, but very funny.
The film takes serious issues (illegal immigration and xenophobia) and makes them entertaining because it presents them in a way that is entertaining yet filled with heart. You get to see the various American hopefuls in a more positive light, yet the film isn't beating you over the head with liberal propaganda. Marin teaching some Chinese men some Spanglish slang is very funny, as is the neighborhood reactions to the sexy lady in the green dress in the opening sequence. Quite an uplifting surprise, one that Cheech can truly be proud of as a modern classic comedy.