Yellow Rose

Noblezada has great pipes and a natural screen presence that augurs well for her future career.

"Yellow Rose" sings an affecting, sorrowful and defiant song where dreams collide with a cruel reality.

Diane Paragas' film finds fresh ground to explore the price and the power of the American dream, bolstered by country crooning and heartbreaking (and very real) legal worries.

Yellow Rose succeeds not only as a coming-of-age story for the ambitious Rose, but also as an exploration of the very real threat weathered every day by the undocumented.

As an undocumented Filipina trying to make it in as a country singer in Texas, breakout star Eva Noblezada punches through the film's familiar contours to find its beating heart as a timely portrait of the immigrant experience.

There's an honesty that Diane Paragas brings to this that I really respect.

Although possessed of certain cliches, this story of modern immigration and cultural exploration feels especially relevant during the Trump era.

Thankfully, the film hits all the right notes, cleverly avoiding the pitfalls of the American Idol-style rags-to-riches trope by venturing into more serious territories.

"Yellow Rose" is equal parts hopeful and heartbreaking. Noblezada's performance pulls together an unforgettable film that chronicles the plights of the undocumented.

The two-time Tony Award nominee [Eva Noblezada] is both charming and heartbreaking as Rose. Her emotive, straightforward performance carries the film.