South Florida Sun-Sentinel
For more Sun-Sentinel lifestyle features, click here.

« Eating without wandering | Main | Have bicycle, won't travel »

My stepdaughter's movie pick

A couple of months ago, I wrote about my younger stepdaughter's trip to the movies to see "Under the Same Moon (La Misma Luna)," a film about a 9-year-old Mexican boy who crosses the border illegally to reunite with his mother in Los Angeles. You can find it in Blockbuster now. We did.

Pax, now 13, almost jumped out of her shoes with excitement when she saw it. We had to rent it. Had to. This was not optional.

I won't go into a full movie review here, except to say that I do recommend it and that I have rarely seen a movie end on a more perfect note.

But what really impressed me was that a teenage girl with no connection to the grand debate about illegal immigration would choose to see this movie in the theaters, gush about it when she got home, and then insist that we watch it together as a family as soon as it was available.

Afterward, we talked about the movie a little bit, about the characters and the storytelling and about one character's act of sacrifice. But I didn't want to ruin a child's enjoyment of a film by delving any deeper into the issues raised by this one. We now have a common reference point around which we can frame future, more profound discussions. The truth is, she didn't like this movie because of its immigration themes. She liked it because it was about a child's love for his mother.

Knowing how lovable Pax's mother is, I can relate.

POSTED IN: Rafael Olmeda (31), Step-parenting (28)

Please comment

Comments

I had that experience with my 14 year-old daughter when she saw "Maria Full of Grace." Although the movie was pretty graphic, I think she liked it because it showed her a world she's only heard about from others. Or maybe she found Maria's desire for independence and freedom, although dangerous, somewhat admirable. Have you seen it?

Thanks for the tip. I missed that one. It's hard to tell what makes a teen like or dislike a movie, especially for those of us with little practice reading their minds (I've been their stepfather for just under a year). Our girls are pretty much guaranteed to enjoy any movie that showcases dance, even if they acknowledge the plot is garbage ("Step Up," anyone?)

Post a comment

To help keep spam off our site, please enter the letter "s" in the field below:

The Transparent Team

Joy Oglesby has an infant daughter and a sister 13 years her junior, whom she babies to the now-adult...more.

Rafael Olmeda is a stepfather to two girls, Kayla (15) and Paxtynn (12). They became a family when Rafael married the former Christine Clark...more

Luis F. Perez covers immigration...more.

Matthew Strozier is an assistant city editor, but his real job is father of two boys, Alexander, a toddler, and Rowan, a newborn...more

Anne Vasquez loves to worry, or so her husband says...more.

Daniel Vasquez, the Sun-Sentinel consumer columnist, comes from a large family...more.

Brittany Wallman is the mother of Creed, 11, and Lily, 5, and is married...more.

Subscribe by email

We'll send you every post.
Just enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Or subscribe through an RSS reader.

Parenting Podcast

Listen to transPARENT bloggers talk about raising kids of all ages.
   › Anne Vasquez
Powered by Movable Type 3.36
Hosted by LivingDot

Add to Technorati Favorites

Parenting Blogs - Blog Catalog Blog Directory