Bella was the number one top rated film of 2007 by Yahoo, the New York Times Readers Poll, and Fandango while it was theaters and is coming out on DVD, Tuesday, May 6. The film also won the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival “People’s Choice” Award. A novel about the film is being released Thursday, May 15 and will be produced as a soap opera.
The Smithsonian Latino Center honored Verastegui and the filmmakers with a “Legacy Award.” The Mexican Embassy honored the film and it won “Best Dramatic Feature” at the 2007 Heartland Film Festival.
Bella plays with your heart on the issue of abortion and its alternatives. Eduardo Verastegui plays a Mexican chef, Jose in his brother’s Mexican restaurant in New York City. His life is changed when Nina (Tammy Blanchard) while pregnant gets fired by Jose’s brother, Manny (Manuel Perez). Alejandro Gomez Monteverde makes his directorial debut with Angelica Aragon, Ali Landry, Ramon Rodriguez, and Jaime Terelli also starring in the film.
The film was touching and deals with real life situations. The girl Nina was left by the father of the child and believes that she has no choice but to abort her child. Jose, who’s not bounced back after going to jail, sees Nina’s unborn child as the answer to his problems. In between scenes of Jose’s family depicting the togetherness of his family as well as mistreatments in the restaurants for Mexican workers are also showed. We can also call this film “a Mexican film” for its portrayal on the importance of the family over anything else.
However, Jose has been haunted by his past. Jose used to be a soccer player who had just signed a two million dollar contract when he’s put in jail. The entire film follows Jose who unexpectedly leaves his job as chef to console Nina over the course of the day. Jose faces his past and with love, gives a solution that helps Nina embrace for the future.
Even with the serious issue of abortion, the film is funny a times. The critics complain about some problems with the plot but even they admit as do I that the film’s message overrides that film. The film is highly recommended.
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