Sueño, directed by Renée Chabría, attempts to present a wide range of Latino music with a plot consisting of personal stories of several recent immigrants to Los Angeles from México, though the cinematography is grainy, and the sound quality does not do justice to the music. When the movie begins, twentysomething Antonio (played by John Leguizamo) is in México; fatherless, he loves his musical mother very much, and thus grieves when she dies. After the funeral, he wonders what to do in the future. His grandfather advises him that dreams (sueños) are the most important things in life. Since his uncle claims to own the top taco house in LA, he decides to immigrate to the United States. When he arrives, he learns that his uncle is only assistant manager of a small taco house. Although he gets a job in the establishment, the restaurant owners soon decide to cut staff; as last hired, Antonio is first fired, but not before idolizing and trying to court Nina (played by Ana Claudia Talncón), a faithful take-out patron. Although he gets a day job as an auto mechanic, he also plays guitar and sings at a nightclub. One night, a radio disk jockey, Zorro (played by Nestor Serrano), discovers his talent and offers to manage his career. He adds Antonio to a band, but they reject him, so he finds another musical group, eager to win a big upcoming competition of Latino musical groups that has a $10,000 prize. Meanwhile, he befriends Mirabela (played by Elizabeth Peña), who lives next door. Both women in his life, however, have problems of their own and do not seem ready for a relationship. Nina, about Antonio's age, cares for her elderly widowed father, who on one occasion has a small stroke. Fortysomething Mirabela has just emerged from a divorce; her husband was seeing another woman and is unlikely to visit her two boys. Fortunately, Mirabela reveals that she was a singer at one time, so Antonio encourages her to join the new band, a decision supported by Zorro, who secretly has his eye on her. When Nina's father recovers his strength after his short hospital stay, he urges her to see more of Antonio. When the film ends, the winner of the competition is not revealed, the dreams of four persons to find their mates are realized, and filmviewers are treated to some singing by the famous José José. MH
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