Juan, Sarah, and Samuel from a Guatemalan slum, board a freight train to the United States looking for better lives. In Mexico, half way to their destination, the teenagers meet an Indian boy from Chiapas, Chowk. Juan takes a hostile attitude toward Chowk as he is intimate with Sarah; she is Juan’s girlfriend. However, they keep traveling together. Eventually, corrupt police, merciless bandits and violent border patrols devastate their journey to the Promised Land. La Jaula de Oro is a film that portrays the friendships, love, and challenges of South American teenagers. Representing the talents of new directors, this film premiered at Un Certain Regard in Cannes this year. It also speaks for South American films that constantly portray the regional reality that many people still cross the American border illegally. The protagonists in the film are just like the other teenagers and their journey looks to be exciting for a moment. But when their hope is broken, it is heartbreaking to see that their lives are at stake even before they really start. (RHEE Soue-won)