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A film with heart. It tells the story of the "Cristiada Wars" from the perspective of those fighting for religious freedoms taken away by President Calles, an atheist, who wanted to eradicate what he felt were the corrupting influences of Catholicism in his country. The film depicts what happens when a government oversteps its bounds and tramples on people's way of life, and certainly Catholicism in Mexico had already become culturally entrenched. The film is beautifully made with virtuosic cinematography, an outstanding musical score, and with many wonderful performances. Andy Garcia carries weight as General Gorostieta, and I particularly enjoyed Oscar Isaac as the cynical "El Catorce." The film delicately weaves in other contemporaneous complexities involving the US government and Mexcio without losing sight of the heart of the story, with a terrifically understated performance by Bruce Greenwood as the U.S. Ambassador. As someone who was once Catholic but is no longer practicing, I do not see this as a religious propaganda film, but as a film depicting a people fighting to maintain their way of life and refusing to let a government tell them they can't live what they believe. It is indeed a story from the point of view of people fighting for their faith, but I do not agree with critiques that accuse the filmmakers of creating "propaganda." This is the disadvantage films from the point of view of religious people have - that some secularists immediately and unfairly will label them "propaganda." With such a broad application of the term all film making is to some degree propaganda; after all, there is no drama without "taking a side." As someone who dislikes religion, I did not feel that this was a film that aims to proselytize, but rather one that reveals a period of Mexican history that few people know about within the context of a riveting drama.