Better Life (Blu Ray) (2011) - Oscar® Nominee!

Editor's Note ABOUT A BOY director Chris Weitz takes the helm for this affecting drama about an illegal immigrant who struggles to give his teenage son a better life by working as a gardener in L.A. Determined to move out of the city in order to get his son away from gangs and into a decent school, the devoted father comes into possession of a truck that allows him to earn a better income by taking more gardening jobs. But with immigration agents on every corner and vicious gangsters trying to lure his son into a life of crime, it's a constant struggle just to survive in such an unforgiving city without being deported. Demian Bichir, Jose Julian, and Delores Heredia star in a film written by Eric Eason (A JOURNEY TO THE END OF THE NIGHT).

	Nancy Lenehan
	Demian Bichir
	Dolores Heredia
	Joaquin Cosio
	Jose Julian
	Isabella Rae Thomas - Co-Star
	Richard Cabral - Co-Star
	Isabella Balajadia - Co-Star
	Giselle Nieto - Co-Star
	Luis A. Colocio - Co-Star
	Ray Moreno - Co-Star
	Taide Acosta - Co-Star
	Isidro Vallin - Co-Star
	Henry Ambriz - Co-Star
	Miguel Alejandro Gaxiola - Co-Star
	Robert Renderos - Co-Star
	Marlon Correa - Co-Star
	Adrian Mojica - Co-Star
	Jason Medwin - Co-Star
	Yelyna de Leon - Co-Star
	Trampas Thompson - Co-Star
	Gabriel Chavarria - Co-Star
	Magi Avila - Co-Star
	Robert Anthony Peters - Co-Star
	Jorge Gaxiola - Co-Star
	Charles Currier - Co-Star
	J. Eddie Martinez - Co-Star
	Abraham Chaidez - Co-Star
	Rolando Molina - Co-Star
	Tim Griffin - Co-Star
	Todd Felix - Co-Star
	Carlos Linares - Co-Star
	Joe Renteria - Co-Star
	Tom Schanley - Co-Star
	London Symphony Orchestra - Music Performer
	Javier Aguirresarobe - Director of Photography
	Roger L. Simon - Story
	Alexandre Desplat - Composer
	Ian Fox - Camera Operator
	Laura Greenlee - Production Manager/UPM
	Ricardo Mendez Matta - Assistant Director
	Jasmine Kosovic - Post-Production Supervisor
	Chris David - Sound Re-Recording
	Eric Eason - Screenwriter
	Stephen Kelley - Set Decorator
	Merrick Morton - Photography
	Bryan John Venegas - Set Decorator
	Trampas Thompson - Stunt Coordinator
	Alexandra Patsavas - Music Director
	Mark Sanchez - Makeup Designer
	Gabriel Serrano - Sound Re-Recording
	Wildfire Visual Effects - Visual Effects Designer
	Catherine Pryor - Set Decorator
	Ray Garcia - Set Decorator
	Elbert Irving IV - Visual Effects Designer
	Valorie Hubbard - Co-Star
	Chris Weitz - Director

Box Office
5 stars out of 5 -- "The timing is right for this remarkable and riveting family drama which puts a human face on the hot-button topic of immigration in such effective and emotional terms that you may never look at the subject in the same way again." 06/21/2011

Hollywood Reporter
"By keeping things simple and understated, Weitz and screenwriter Eric Eason have crafted a little gem where humanity is observed with compassion, not condescension." 06/15/2011

New York Times
"[A]n emotionally resonant film about how we live now....A BETTER LIFE involves a struggle to hold onto a home of one's own." 06/24/2011

USA Today
"A BETTER LIFE is must-see viewing, poignantly revealing what it's like living confined to the shadows of contemporary society." 06/22/2011

Movieline
"The story is an urgent one and its frame is well chosen." 06/23/2011

Entertainment Weekly
"Bichir gives a superb slow simmer of a performance. His Carlos is a silent striver who embodies a humanity that is ultimately heartbreaking." -- Grade: B 07/01/2011

Chicago Sun-Times
3.5 stars out of 4 -- "[T]he story takes on some of the shape of THE BICYCLE THIEF....The performances are pitch perfect..." 07/06/2011

Rolling Stone
3 stars out of 4 -- "Chris Weitz cuts deep in this tale....This movie will get under your skin." 07/07/2011

Total Film
3 stars out of 5 -- "[I]ts obvious debt to BICYCLE THIEVES is repaid with sincere sentiment and strong acting." 07/07/2011

Sight and Sound
"[A] gently understated tale....[Bichir's] performance -- much of it in subtitled Spanish -- is all the affecting for being utterly unshowy." 09/01/2011