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Cesar Chavez

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United States, Mexico · 2014
Rated PG-13 · 1h 42m
Director Diego Luna
Starring Michael Peña, Rosario Dawson, America Ferrera, Jacob Vargas
Genre Drama

Famed civil-rights activist and labor organizer Cesar Chavez is a man torn between his duties as a father and husband, and his commitment to his ideals of fighting for a living wage for farm workers. The film traces the life of a legend as he struggles against greed and prejudice to bring dignity to working people.

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What are critics saying?

58

The A.V. Club by A.A. Dowd

What Cesar Chavez critically lacks is a unique, complicated, or personal perspective on its world-famous subject. As is often the problem with portraits of influential firebrands, the film never quite sees past the movement to the man leading it.

30

Village Voice by Inkoo Kang

The careless diminishment of every other character that isn't Chávez — including wife Helen, played by an utterly wasted America Ferrera in a grape-sized role — might be worth overlooking if the film provided any insights into its subject.

50

The Playlist by Jessica Kiang

It’s a competent, unobjectionable history lesson but Cesar Chavez’ legacy needs a more inspired and inspiring telling if it's to get the exposure this crusading figure deserves.

50

New York Post by Kyle Smith

It’s too busy with feel-good slogans like “Si Se Puede.” The slogan may be nice, but it’s meaningless. So is the movie.

83

Entertainment Weekly by Owen Gleiberman

In the title role, Michael Peña has a no-nonsense fire: He captures how Chavez borrowed from Martin Luther King Jr. but also fueled the struggle with his own improvisatory brilliance.

50

Variety by Peter Debruge

Neither Pena nor the pic itself delivers the necessary dynamism, strained by a modest budget and too few extras to sufficiently re-create a movement that found strength in numbers.

75

McClatchy-Tribune News Service by Roger Moore

Like "42," Cesar Chavez lacks the budget to feel truly epic in scope. The violence is scattered, shocking and personal, the struggles within the union muted but the outrage — is palpable.

63

Slant Magazine by Steve Macfarlane

Not unlike Michael Peña's prior supporting roles, Chavez is marked by an explosive anger kept under a cherubic, sweet-natured mask, providing the surprise lacking in the story's text.

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