Walter Perez Movies
California native Walter Perez began honing his skills as a kid, acting in homemade movies with his friends and family. Eventually turning pro, Perez began appearing on shows like Judging Amy and The District before landing the recurring role of Bobby "Bull" Reyes on the acclaimed prime time drama Friday Night Lights. He would go on to appear in movies like The Beautiful Life, Emilio, and the remake of Fame (2009). ~ Cammila Albertson, Rovi
A Santa Fe district attorney and his wife take desperate measures to find a lung donor for their dying daughter in this topical thriller starring Dermot Mulroney and Diane Kruger. Their daughter Chloe stricken with a degenerative condition that's quickly cutting off her air supply, Paul (Mulroney) and his wife, Diane (Kruger), hit a dead end in the American medical system. But when Chloe's health takes a turn for the worse, desperation leads Paul to Juarez, Mexico, and a mysterious medico named Dr. Novarro. Though Dr. Novarro may be the only hope for performing a successful lung transplant before it's too late, his close ties to the Mexican criminal underworld soon lead the desperate parents to second-guess their decision to go with such a radical alternative treatment. But before Paul and Diane can get Chloe to the operating room, they realize she might not be the only member of the family that will never make it back home. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mia Stallard, Dermot Mulroney, (more)
This remake of the '80s classic focuses on a group of young students attending a high school for the performing arts. Classmates study various aspects of performance, from dance to songwriting to acting, all of them hoping for the chance to one day become stars. Debbie Allen, Charles S. Dutton, Kelsey Grammer, Megan Mullally, and Bebe Neuwirth portray the instructors, with a host of newcomers toplining the production as the students. ~ Cammila Albertson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Kristy Flores, Asher Book, (more)
The bonds of family are weathered by the winds of change in this independent drama from writer and director Chris Eska. Jamie (Pedro Castaneda) is an illegal immigrant living in Texas, where he earns a living doing odd jobs and farm work; in his early sixties, Jamie is no longer a young man, but he works hard and takes his responsibilities seriously. Jamie shares his home with his daughter-in-law, Lupe (Veronica Loren), who has been on her own since the untimely death of her husband. Jamie feels a paternal love for Lupe, and tries to look out for her however he can, while she looks up to the strong but gentle old man. Life is slowly changing for both of them, though; Jamie isn't getting the same kind of work he once did, and his health is beginning to fail him, while Lupe is gradually finding new love, which deeply concerns her protective father-in-law. August Evening received a special "sneak preview" screening as a work in progress at the 2007 South by Southwest Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Pedro Castaneda, Veronica Loren, (more)
Made for cable, Walkout is the true story of a little-known but profoundly significant moment in the history of the Latino community in East Los Angeles. In 1968, Lincoln High School honor student Paula Crisostomo (Alexa Vega), outraged at the shabby treatment afforded Chicano students in the L.A. school system -- including habitually lowered expectations, poor facilities, a total absence of bilingual courses or textbooks, unfairly administered penalties for slight infractions, demeaning corporal punishment, and out-of-hand refusal to write letters of recommendation to choice colleges -- challenges the authority of her elders for the first time in her life by organizing a mass student walkout at five barrio high schools. Mentored by dedicated young teacher Sal Castro (Michael Pena), Paula and her fellow student activists intend to make their protest a peaceful one, but the L.A. cops typically use brute force to quell the "radicals." Even when it seems that the school board will capitulate to the Chicano students' demands, the kids are betrayed (there's an undercover police officer in their midst) and the leaders of the walkout are threatened with lengthy prison sentences on trumped-up "conspiracy" charges. It will not spoil the ending of the film to reveal that the students are ultimately successful; as directed by actor Edward James Olmos (who also plays one of the school board members), the dramatic thrust of the story is the lasting effect that the protest has on its participants -- especially the idealistic Paula Crisostomo. Executive producer Moctesuma Esparza, who'd been one of the original walkout organizers back in 1968, spent a full two decades getting this story on film; Esparza is played by Bodie Olmos, son of the director, while Esparza's daughter Tonantzin Esparza is seen as Vickie Castro. Also, Paula Crisostomo's daughter Marisol Crisostomo-Romo is seen as Mita -- and in addition, several of the former student activists are interviewed during the closing credits, or appear as extras in the crowd scenes. Produced for HBO, Walkout originally aired on March 18, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Alexa Vega, Michael Peña, (more)
Miguel M. Espinoza and Selvin G. Tambito's update of Romeo and Juliet replaces the film's original setting and places the tale in an inner-city world full of violence. Rivals focuses on a Mexican family feuding with a Salavadorian family. In the midst of their conflict a love develops between young members of both families. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gabriel Guillen, April Seba, (more)
