Balseros (2002)

In 1994, after a wave of unrest in Cuba, a mass exodus began of Cubans using makeshift rafts to try and reach the United States, leading to the United States enacting a wet feet/dry feet policy. This documentary follows the lives of seven Cubans urgently attempting the journey before the policy was established and what happened to those individuals years later after they had arrived in their new country. It’s a bit long and unfocused, jumping from story to story and not giving much time for each character to breath and develop for the viewer. While still slow in the second half, it got more interesting when focusing on the immigrant experience in the United States, how, even for those who are welcomed, it can vary greatly and that it requires infinite perseverance and luck to survive.

Oscar Nomination: Best Documentary, Features