KYMM'S 365 DAY MOVIE CHALLENGE #4: INMATE #1 (2019, dir by Brett Harvey, USA)

Inmate #1: The Rise of Danny Trejo is a documentary about one of the most unlikely movies stars ever, Danny Trejo.

Trejo made his way from San Quentin to number one on the call sheet. From a poor boy robbing all of the stores in his neighbourhood to a rich man staying in that neighbourhood and supporting it with his money, rather than moving to Beverly Hills.

The first half of the movie is entirely about Danny's pre-acting life, and it is so intense that it makes no sense that he ended up where he ended up. It's not an agonizing story in any way, you're not going to hear stories about a horrible childhood, but about a boy with an uncle who is such a pied piper, who had flash and money and fancy cars, who introduced Danny to heroin and armed robbery to support the habit, until he ended up in prison for selling a baggie of literal table sugar to an undercover cop.

The second half of the movie: movie star. And the most fascinating part is the journey between these two realities, involving both will and luck. Some extreme luck that made it so that he would leave prison at all. Extreme will to change everything about his life. Opportunity to work in movies. When these three blessings occured, he was there to receive them and turn them to his advantage and not return back in prison for the rest of his life.

Danny Trejo is a tough cholo. But he is also a person who found out that helping people is the best way to live, and the only way to make your life better. He is an inspiration without pretending to be any kind of an angel, and this is a film that is absolutely worth seeking out.

Available for rent on Vudu, Google Play, Amazon Prime, YouTube, Apple TV, and Amazon Prime.

Kymm Zuckert is an actor/writer/native Angelino. When Kymm was a child, her parents would take her to see anything, which means that sometimes she will see a film today and say, “I saw that when I was eight, I don’t remember any of that inappropriate sex stuff!” Check out her entire 365 day blog @ https://365filmsin365days.movie.blog