Romántico

Pain, poetry and perseverance form the backbone of Mark Becker's compassionate, well-observed documentary.

Following a hardworking, goodhearted man as life beats the hell out of him, this documentary is moving almost to the point of exploitation.

A modest documentary, small in scope and ambition, but it achieves one of the higher callings of art in that it forces viewers to look at a something in a newer, deeper and more humane way.

It will be a long time before you forget the deep pain etched into the weary face of Carmelo Muñiz, the mariachi singer at the center of Mark Becker's immensely moving documentary.

Engrossing pic is impressively shot, edited and scored.

Works best as a beautifully executed and inspirational work of self-sacrifice.

Carmelo, the central figure, returns home when his mother's health begins to decline, and his love of family, something of an abstraction in the first part, leaves him deeply divided: he wants to care for them personally, but he can better provide for them by returning to the U.S.