Sweet 15
Encyclopedia
Sweet 15 is a 1990 American made-for-television family
drama film
about a fourteen year old girl whose dreams of having a perfect quinceanera
are suddenly halted when she realizes that her family is not in the United States legally
.
A WonderWorks
film, it is commonly shown in Spanish classes all over the country to teach about Mexican culture.
immigrants. She and her two siblings were born in the United States and are living in Los Angeles
. They are a working class family, and their hardworking father, Samuel, is the manager of a steel mill
that makes chain link fences. He has been working hard for much of his life, and the work finally paid off when they became legal citizens. Marta is seen as spoiled, immature, and somewhat naive, but she wants to have an amazing quinceanera, as her friends are all having one. Her parents tell her that she may have to postpone it, because of financial problems, when in reality, they are not legal citizens, and they need to save money in case Samuel's manager, Mr. Waterman (Jerry Stiller
) finds out and he is left jobless. Marta does not understand the situation and is very angry and upset. Her jealousy only increases when she is forced to get a job in the immigration department of their church to volunteer in the community.
She continues to plan, however, determined to have her "quince". Also, her friends are busy hitting on her handsome, distant cousin Ramón from New York
who just arrived in California. They are pressuring Marta to dance with him at her quince, but she is too shy, and Ramon is struggling with his inability to read or write. Samuel knows that he has earned his citizenship, as he has worked hard and lived in America for over a decade, but as he has no papers, there is no way that anybody can know that. While working at the church one day, Marta discovers that Samuel is an illegal, and begins getting very worried and touchy about the subject.
Samuel does not want Marta dating Ramón, but she goes behind his back and enlists him for help in getting all of Samuel's previous employer's signatures, so he can get his papers. Meanwhile, Jorge, Samuel's best friend and a close acquaintance of the family is deported to Mexico when he fails to present his papers, which he does not have. Also, at Samuel's plant, more and more employees are being fired or deported, and Samuel fears he may be next, so he is hard at work trying to find a second job, one that does not require papers. She gets all but one signature, and goes to an auto salvage yard
for the last one, but the manager is rude and stubbornly refuses to sign the papers. Marta is persistant, and the manager has a change of heart and manages to sign the papers. Also, Ramón learns how to read and surprises Marta with it.
She presents her father with his signatures, and he sends them in for their papers. Soon after, he is given his temporary papers to show at his job, as it will be a while before their permanent papers arrive. Samuel thanks his daughter and they embrace. However, Marta is soon told that they found that she had been tampering with the files and she has to go inside. As she goes in, expecting the worst, she discovers that it was all part of her surprise quince. She dances with Ramón, whom her father now respects. Marta, having grown up and changed considerably from spoiled to respectful during the journey, she embraces her newlyfound womanhood.
Family film
A family film is a film genre that is designed to appeal to a variety of age groups and, thus, families.In December 2005, Steven Spielberg's 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial came first in a poll of the 100 Greatest Family Films. The genre today generates billions of dollars per annum.Family...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
about a fourteen year old girl whose dreams of having a perfect quinceanera
Quinceañera
Quinceañera , sometimes called "Fiesta de quince años", "Fiesta de Quinceañera", "Quince años" or simply "quince", is the celebration of a girl's fifteenth birthday in parts of Latin America and elsewhere in communities of immigrants from Latin America...
are suddenly halted when she realizes that her family is not in the United States legally
Illegal immigration
Illegal immigration is the migration into a nation in violation of the immigration laws of that jurisdiction. Illegal immigration raises many political, economical and social issues and has become a source of major controversy in developed countries and the more successful developing countries.In...
.
A WonderWorks
WonderWorks
WonderWorks was a project jointly owned by The Walt Disney Company and PBS that made short, made for TV movies out of acclaimed children's books...
film, it is commonly shown in Spanish classes all over the country to teach about Mexican culture.
Plot
Marta de la Cruz is the daughter of two hardworking MexicanMexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
immigrants. She and her two siblings were born in the United States and are living in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. They are a working class family, and their hardworking father, Samuel, is the manager of a steel mill
Steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel.Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. It is produced in a two-stage process. First, iron ore is reduced or smelted with coke and limestone in a blast furnace, producing molten iron which is either cast into pig iron or...
that makes chain link fences. He has been working hard for much of his life, and the work finally paid off when they became legal citizens. Marta is seen as spoiled, immature, and somewhat naive, but she wants to have an amazing quinceanera, as her friends are all having one. Her parents tell her that she may have to postpone it, because of financial problems, when in reality, they are not legal citizens, and they need to save money in case Samuel's manager, Mr. Waterman (Jerry Stiller
Jerry Stiller
Gerald Isaac "Jerry" Stiller is an American comedian and actor.He spent many years in the comedy team Stiller and Meara with his wife Anne Meara...
) finds out and he is left jobless. Marta does not understand the situation and is very angry and upset. Her jealousy only increases when she is forced to get a job in the immigration department of their church to volunteer in the community.
She continues to plan, however, determined to have her "quince". Also, her friends are busy hitting on her handsome, distant cousin Ramón from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
who just arrived in California. They are pressuring Marta to dance with him at her quince, but she is too shy, and Ramon is struggling with his inability to read or write. Samuel knows that he has earned his citizenship, as he has worked hard and lived in America for over a decade, but as he has no papers, there is no way that anybody can know that. While working at the church one day, Marta discovers that Samuel is an illegal, and begins getting very worried and touchy about the subject.
Samuel does not want Marta dating Ramón, but she goes behind his back and enlists him for help in getting all of Samuel's previous employer's signatures, so he can get his papers. Meanwhile, Jorge, Samuel's best friend and a close acquaintance of the family is deported to Mexico when he fails to present his papers, which he does not have. Also, at Samuel's plant, more and more employees are being fired or deported, and Samuel fears he may be next, so he is hard at work trying to find a second job, one that does not require papers. She gets all but one signature, and goes to an auto salvage yard
Junkyard
The word junkyard may refer to:*A wreck yard, also known as a junkyard or scrapyard*Junkyard a hero. He is featured in Robot Chicken where he dies of theobromine poisoning.*Junkyard , a hard rock band based in Los Angeles...
for the last one, but the manager is rude and stubbornly refuses to sign the papers. Marta is persistant, and the manager has a change of heart and manages to sign the papers. Also, Ramón learns how to read and surprises Marta with it.
She presents her father with his signatures, and he sends them in for their papers. Soon after, he is given his temporary papers to show at his job, as it will be a while before their permanent papers arrive. Samuel thanks his daughter and they embrace. However, Marta is soon told that they found that she had been tampering with the files and she has to go inside. As she goes in, expecting the worst, she discovers that it was all part of her surprise quince. She dances with Ramón, whom her father now respects. Marta, having grown up and changed considerably from spoiled to respectful during the journey, she embraces her newlyfound womanhood.
Cast
- Karla MontanaKarla MontanaKarla Montana is an American actress. Her first role was on a TV pilot dubbed "The Family Martinez" with actors Robert Beltran and Denise Crosby.-Career:...
as Marta de la Cruz - Panchito Gómez as Ramón
- Jerry StillerJerry StillerGerald Isaac "Jerry" Stiller is an American comedian and actor.He spent many years in the comedy team Stiller and Meara with his wife Anne Meara...
as Mr. Waterman - Tony PlanaTony PlanaTony Plana is a Cuban-American actor and director. He is well known for playing Betty Suarez's father, Ignacio Suarez, on the ABC show Ugly Betty.-Personal life:...
as Samuel Cruz - Robert Covarrubias as Jorge
- Laura P. Vega as Gabrielle 'Gaby' Corea
- Giselle Anthony as Jackie