Cesar Chavez

In the title role, Michael Peña has a no-nonsense fire: He captures how Chavez borrowed from Martin Luther King Jr. but also fueled the struggle with his own improvisatory brilliance.

It never quite takes off in a stirring, inspirational way, but moves steadily forward in solid fashion.

Not unlike Michael Peña's prior supporting roles, Chavez is marked by an explosive anger kept under a cherubic, sweet-natured mask, providing the surprise lacking in the story's text.

It seems like a waste of talent, but worse still, Cesar Chavez squanders an opportunity to revisit a story worth retelling.

It’s too busy with feel-good slogans like “Si Se Puede.” The slogan may be nice, but it’s meaningless. So is the movie.

The script by Keir Pearson is admirably restrained in many ways, but it is also almost completely devoid of anything that would give the film the feel of actual life.

The careless diminishment of every other character that isn't Chávez — including wife Helen, played by an utterly wasted America Ferrera in a grape-sized role — might be worth overlooking if the film provided any insights into its subject.

If you're too young to remember the '60s **** boycott, this biopic will put it in perspective. Chavez is the labor organizer who led California farm workers in their 5-year fight for fair conditions and a living wage. The fact that he was a mild-mannered advocate doesn't help this film, because it's lacking in the fervor that would have made it rousing or at least moving. The conditions are never fully explored and even the villains aren't particularly fleshed out. Michael Peña is fine in the lead, but director Diego Luna never elevates this potentially powerful story above a competent history lesson.

Director Diego Luna took the under-told, inspiring, and compelling story of one of America's most important labor leaders and created a dull, cliche, and poorly crafted film. Simply put, Cesar Chavez deserves better than this. It's saddens me to think this will be the image that many people first see of him. Don't waste your money.