Plot summary

This epic film traces over three generations an immigrant family's trials, tragedies, and triumphs. Jose and Maria, the first generation, come to Los Angeles, meet, marry, and face deportation, all in the 1930s. They establish their family in East L.A., and their children Chucho, Paco, Memo, Irene, Toni, and Jimmy deal with youth culture and the L.A. police in the 1950s. As the second generation become adults in the 1960s, the focus shifts to Jimmy, his marriage to Salvadoran refugee Isabel, and his journey to becoming a responsible father to their son.—