'Sin Nombre' review

Paulina Gaitan (Credit: Eniac Martinez/Focus)

When you're running, the destination sometimes matters a lot more than the reason. That's certainly the case when Sayra (Paulina Gaitan), a Honduran teenager trying to sneak into the U.S., and Casper (Edgar Flores), a gang member fleeing his former mates who want to kill him, spark a friendship on a train heading north through Mexico.

The buzz: The last thing anyone needs is another immigration-related mess like "Crossing Over." With "Sin Nombre," first-time feature director Cary Fukunaga won the directing award at this year's Sundance Film Festival, which hopefully indicates that the film actually offers some structure and wisdom about the immigrant experience.

The verdict: Can gangsters transition into normalcy after leaving a gang? Can illegals escape harsh conditions and adapt into America? Well acted and paced, "Sin" poses these questions and serves as a tense, awfully depressing companion piece to last year's great "Wendy and Lucy" when seen as a search for opportunity where there isn't any. "Nombre" doesn't show how Casper's gang has such strong lines of communication, and the gang's ability to track him is most unconvincing during the too-pat finale. But it's hard not to be chilled by the way the movie makes death seem like something you can't stave off. Whether you're in a gang or journeying to the border, death is chasing after you.

Did you know? The film informs us that if a person's second toe is bigger than the first, it means they're a fast runner. Something worth looking into, but not until you're around people who don't mind smelling your feet.

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