Born and Bred

Filmed in Los Angeles from 2005 to 2010, Justin Frimmer's Born and Bred is a defiant, powerful, and inspiring against-all-odds sports documentary. Although focusing on the Latino boxing community in East L.A., the narrative also touches on deeper matters, both political and philosophical. Examining the sense of pride and tradition (and machismo) that fighting has for young men growing up in the hard-knock barrios, Frimmer follows the teenaged Molina twins, Oscar and Javier (and their wisdom-imparting trainer), genuinely conveying what a thin line these kids walk between a straight life of sport and one of drug gangs, prison, and death. The Molina twins, like many young boxers in the community, are being pushed to make the Olympic team, and much of the film's strength lies in the dramatic build-up of the Molina twins' unlikely rise in the ranks—including Javier's contending bout against the number one amateur pugilist in the country in a mind-boggling comeback that puts any Rocky movie to shame. DVD extras include behind-the-scenes featurettes. Highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (M. Sandlin)