people the movie was about." Nava tells the story that, at one point, Mexican police kidnapped their accountant and held him for ransom, while, at the same time, his parents had to pose as tourists in order to smuggle exposed film out of the country in their suitcases. Filming locations The film was shot in Mexico and California. In Mexico: Chiapas, Morelos, México, D.F., and Tijuana. In California: San Diego and Los Angeles. Distribution The film was released in Scotland on October 11, 1983. On December 11, 1983, the movie opened in New York City and on January 27, 1984, it opened in wide release. It was screened in the section at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. A director's cut was re-released in May 2000. The film was shown by Fathom Events on September 15, 2019 to commemorate its 35th anniversary, and featured new interviews with director Gregory Nava and the film's two stars, Zaide Silvia Gutierrez and David Villalpando. The film was preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2017. Reception Critical response When released, the staff at Variety magazine described the film as the "first United American independent epic." In his four-star review, film critic Roger Ebert was pleased with Nava and Thomas's work and likened it to a classic film of yesteryear, writing: "El Norte (1983) tells their story with astonishing visual beauty, with unashamed melodrama, with anger leavened by hope. It is a Grapes of Wrath for our time." In a scene where the characters cross into California by means of a rat-infested sewer tunnel and emerge to a view of San Diego, Commonweal critic Tom O'Brien wrote: "...the scene sums up its rare strength". Film critics Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat of the website Spirituality and Practice were touched by Nava and Thomas' story and the attention they give to the character's native roots, and wrote: "Nava's attention to details, particularly the aesthetic and religious beauty of Indian culture, and his sympathy for the protagonists' inner lives lift this story above its melodramatic moments and make the tale a memorable one." Yet, some film reviewers objected to what they considered the film's overly sad end as Vincent Canby, writing for The New York Times, wrote: "Until its arbitrarily tragic ending, El Norte seems about to make one of the most boldly original and satirical social-political statements ever to be found in a film about the