I really liked this movie for the most part, just a couple of things bugged me.
Were we meant to think that Romy had married Diego off screen, as she was european, so how would she be able to work and have a child in the USA?
Wouldn't Diego have used a condom when they had their one night stand? Or are we just meant to think that it broke.
First, anybody can give birth in the U.S. When Diego was leaving the water for people crossing the border, it reminded me of an episode of an 80s night time soap starring David Soul, The Yellow Rose, which was set in Texas. One episode had a pregnant woman trying desperately to cross the border before giving birth so her child would be a citizen.
Romy did not marry Diego. There was no time and again, it would not be necessary to the plot.
Second, they are probably paying her under the table for working at the cafe. She could always go on to get a green card.
I guess Diego wasn't worried about safe sex. I doubt he was worried about an STD, knowing he was dying. Or they did use a condom but it broke or slipped. They aren't 100% effective.
As a former HIV/STD counselor, I thought Romy should have been concerned about getting something from a guy who has multiple partners who have multiple partners. But I suspended my disbelief.
Those aren't plot holes, just things that weren't explained or were glossed over.
It ain't the Ganges, but you go with what you got." ~ Ken Talley, "The Fifth of July"
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She told him she was pregnant, he wanted her to get an abortion. Then she didn't see him again until he died. They didn't have months together. She looked like she was four or five months along. The scene with Native American Grandma showed that she knew she was going to be alone and pregnant.
He finally said he loved her right at the end, so it's obvious they hadn't been in a committed relationship.
Sorry, that's a nice fantasy, but it didn't happen.
It ain't the Ganges, but you go with what you got." ~ Ken Talley, "The Fifth of July"
I missed that they had been apart all that time too. I just presumed they had been together that whole time after their fight about the baby. Thats sad if they weren't. It wasn't that clear though, or maybe I drifted off, lol.
Maybe it's just me again, but it bugs me when I am watching a movie and things seem really unrealistic. But I can see how Romy would want to stay and not go back to France to have her baby, but surely she would be living and working illegaly and therefore even though she could give birth, it wouldn't be that easy for her to stay. Maybe what we saw at the end was just them coming back for a vacation?
Okay, I had my Amazon rental for 48 hours so I watched it three times. But it was clear to me from the beginning.
First, Romy found her new life in California where he met Diego and her newfound Indian "family" and there was no indication she longed to return to France.
Why couldn't she extend her visa to stay? I don't see it as a problem. She was clearly living in Diego's house years later with her son. It is entirely possible that she did.
We saw him unable to deal with her being pregnant and rejecting her comfort when she saw him in the bathroom coughing up blood. Next, we saw her crying and Grandma comforting her, telling her she would help Romy get through it. The last time we see her with Diego is when teenage guy runs to get her. Clearly, she would not have been away from him if she knew he was that sick.
Yes, the movie did not go into details about Romy's legal status, but it never showed her getting a divorce from Richard either. It just didn't focus on those details, because they aren't important. Again, she was in a small, desert town working at a tiny cafe owned by a Native American. I really doubt they cared if she had a green card. Do you know how many people overstay their travel visas and live in the US for decades "illegally"? Nobody stops someone from giving birth in the first place and any child born on American soil is automatically an American citizen, regardless of the mother's nationality or citizenship. If you are not from the US, maybe you aren't aware of these things.
Yes, it was sad that Diego couldn't allow himself to love her or make a relationship with her. He was suffering both emotionally and physically. Had it been me, I would have at least tried harder than Romy did or made sure his brother and sister in
law were taking care of him. But maybe they were because we didn't see that either, though I doubt it.
It ain't the Ganges, but you go with what you got." ~ Ken Talley, "The Fifth of July"
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They were separated for Diego's final months. After she moved out, they didn't see each other again and she was in her early pregnancy, but the next time she sees Diego (right before he dies) she's visibly showing and already into her 2nd trimester. So no, they didn't share those final months of his life as they ideally should have.
shareAgreed. It's a nice, sweet fantasy, but if they had been together, something would have been shown, him coming around about the baby, something, anything. And there would have been no reason to show Grandma comforting Romy as she was crying about not knowing what to do. We see Romy working at the diner and walking in the desert and looking at the sky, clear indications she is coming to terms with her life on her own.
When he said he loved her, she cried because he finally admitted it.
It ain't the Ganges, but you go with what you got." ~ Ken Talley, "The Fifth of July"
Thanks for your insight, it's very interesting. I am not from the US, but I have lived there and I know how hard it is to get work visa's and green cards, which is why I queried that part of the movie as being unrealistic for her to have stayed under the radar if she had a child, but I take on board your points that plenty of people do. I remember a european character in Dexter (one of his crazy girlfriends) working illegally and they basically said that the police weren't even bothered, because they had so many people to investigate. My brother is a US citizen, and works as a paramedic in southern California, and he frequently encounters people living illegally, so I know a little of the system from him, such as they aren't denied emergency treatment, like assistance giving birth.
any child born on American soil is automatically an American citizen,I didn't know this and I am surprised. Even in my country where we have people from literally all over the world desperately trying to get in and get granted residency and welfare, including plenty of heavily pregnant women here to have their babies! I don't think that is the case.
I figured maybe you weren't aware of those things. Either Romy got a work visa or she simply worked "under the table" meaning no taxes were taken out or records were kept. A lot of Native Americans don't like to follow those rules. There was obviously a reservation nearby, as evidenced by the messy, run down houses and broken down cars.
What country are you from?
It ain't the Ganges, but you go with what you got." ~ Ken Talley, "The Fifth of July"
I'm from UK.
shareThey were clearly paying her under the table as they knew she would be working illegally. HOWEVER, if it was Indian Reserve they can do pretty much anything they want as they're exploded from most US federal laws. So, it wouldn't matter anyways. And yes, it was very clear that they weren't together as she had remained on the reserve and they showed her stomach change in size during that time.
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