I really loved this film, but I was wondering about the meaning of the title. "Sin nombre" means without a name or nameless in English. How does the title relate to the story? Who or what was nameless? All the characters had names, even if they were gang names. Does the title refer to immigrants in general as nameless faces?
Anybody have a theory about this?
Hi Mike.
I think that it may mean that to the rest of the gang Casper is now an outlaw/a nameless person that they can take down. When he looses the strings to the gang he also "looses his name".
Interesting theory. I thought it was interesting that his gang name was Casper. Of course, I thought of Casper the friendly ghost, always trying to help people. Willie was sort of a living ghost in the sense that he he was a dead man walking. He knew that the gang would get him one way or another, that it was just a matter of time, so he used that time to save Sarya and help get her across the U.S. border.
Great movie.
"Casper" is often a nickname given to an ethnic person with a light complexion or for pale white people. I wouldn't put much stock in the names, brutal gang members are not known for their grasp of the figurative.
shareI agree but also think that it means that for the majority of people, themes such as misery, poverty, violence, illegal immigration have no name, no face - they are simply flash news or statistics. Then the movie gives us some faces and names of those themes in a very simple but powerful storytelling. Brilliant movie.
shareI agree with jacottj, I think it more refers to the migrants. They're treated like they're not humans with their own names, families, aspirations... They're just a statistical side effect of the rich plundering the country's wealth.
sharei think it just has to do with "casper" not really having an identity
all the while he's thinking, and everyone else, including him,
is he casper (an assassin, marero, whatever)? or is he willy (boyfriend, lover, caring guy)?
he's a guy "sin nombre"
I think that it can either mean that Willie doesn't have a name becuz his set calls him Casper which is not his real life, or it has to do with the fact that Willie is in the MS13 gang and it is all about the gang and not about him. He isn't himself or doesn't have a life of his own. He belongs to the gang.
shareI really loved this film, but I was wondering about the meaning of the title. "Sin nombre" means without a name or nameless in English. How does the title relate to the story? Who or what was nameless? All the characters had names, even if they were gang names. Does the title refer to immigrants in general as nameless faces?
Anybody have a theory about this?
Sin nombre is a reference used when they find a dead body on the street or a river (spoiler) remember that Casper mentions he doesn't have family...only the gang...when they kill him they dumped his body in the river, when the body is found no one will claim him so he died nameless
share