I watched a beautiful movie tonight!
It was such a wonderful story, with Mexican people & Puerto Rican - Latino, family, love, sadness, joy, Wow! Wasn't what I was expecting, as I just borrowed it from a friend.
It really was a treat!
Here's the story from Wikipedia, but if you don't want to spoil it, go rent it, because it really is a lovely story. So touching! So sad! I feel so sad for José.
Like I said, Wow! it really touched me.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bella_%28film%29
Bella is a 2006 film directed by Alejandro Gomez Monteverde starring Eduardo Verastegui and Tammy Blanchard. Set in New York City, the film is about how one moment changed the lives of three people forever
Bella (film)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bella tells the story of Nina, a New York City waitress, and her co-worker Jose, a cook.
The energy in the kitchen of an elegant Mexican restaurant in Manhattan is cranking up steadily, as the staff braces for the noon rush. One waitress, Nina, is running late, which is becoming a habit. She dashes in at the last minute, but Manny, the owner, tells her this is one time too many, and fires her on the spot.
As Nina storms out, the head chef, Manny's brother José, follows her outside to make sure she's okay. She confides in him that she is pregnant, but says she is not ready for a baby and is seriously considering abortion. Over the course of the day, he takes her to his house, and he tells her that a few years ago he had been driving a car when he accidentally hit a little girl, who died instantly from the impact. He was sentenced to four years in jail for vehicular manslaughter. After being released from jail, José tried multiple times to get in touch with the girl's mother; this never happens, as it is said that the mother of the child never forgave him.
After José is done telling his story, he and Nina go into his parents' house, where they eat dinner with José's mother, father, and younger brother and his girlfriend. José's parents say to Nina that she is always welcome to stay at their house if need be. She appreciates the offer, but declines. The next day, José walks with Nina on the street and he leaves as she is going to go get an abortion. José walks back to the restaurant from the beginning of the film, where his brother re-hires him. They hug, and just as Manny starts talking about a new dish he'd like to try out, José whispers something in his ear. José is then seen playing on a beach with a young girl, who we learn is his daughter. It turns out that José got in touch with Nina before her abortion and said he'd like to adopt her baby. Nina then pulls up in a taxi and talks with José and his daughter (later called "Bella") and Bella realizes Nina is her birth mother, and they exchange meaningful gifts. Nina, Bella, and José are then seen walking off the beach together.
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Bella took the "People's Choice Award" at the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival.[8]
Bella won the Heartland Film Festival's Grand Prize Award Winner for Best Dramatic Feature and the Crystal Heart Awards for Monteverde as writer/director/producer.[9]
Bella's filmmakers received the Smithsonian Institution's "Legacy Award" for the film's positive contribution to Latino art and culture.[10][11] "This movie depicts the culture but also transcends it," said Pilar O'Leary, executive director of the Smithsonian Institution's Latino Center. "It has universal appeal."[12]
Bella received the Tony Bennett Media Excellence Award.[8] Bennett said Bella is "a perfect film, an artistic masterpiece that will live in people's hearts forever."[13]
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Office for Film and Broadcasting rated Bella as the second-best film of 2007 (with Juno)[14] noting that Bella presents an "affirmative pro-life message," along with "themes of self-forgiveness, reconciliation and redemption that should resonate deeply."[15]
The director of the Department of Citizenship gave the director of Bella, Alejandro Monteverde, the "American by Choice" Award at a White House reception for Bella's positive contribution to Latino art and culture in the United States.[16] Monteverde was also invited to join the First Lady in her private box to watch the State of the Union address.[17]
The Mexican Embassy honored the film and gave Bella a screening at their annual Cinco De Mayo celebration.[12]
Bella broke the record for a Latino-themed film in total box office earnings and box office average per screen for films released in 2007. It was the top-rated movie on the New York Times Readers' Poll, Yahoo and Fandango.[18] The Wall Street Journal said Bella was "the fall's biggest surprise" and stated that "after only four weeks in release Bella has total sales of $5.2 million."[19] Bella ended its U.S. theatrical release with more than $10 million in domestic box office, finishing the year in the top 10-grossing independent films of 2007.
* Sophie Nyweide as Bella
* Eduardo Verástegui as José
* Tammy Blanchard as Nina
* Manny Perez as Manny
* Ali Landry as Celia
* Ramón Rodríguez as Eduardo
* Ewa Da Cruz as Veronica
* Alexa Gerasimovich as Luchi
* Herbie Lovelle plays a cameo role as a homeless person.
* Angélica Aragón as José's mother
