This beautifully filmed, expertly acted film about two 17-year-old, middle class Mexican boys on summer break is deceivingly complex. The basic plot of the film is that best friends Tenoch (Diego Luna, BEFORE NIGHT FALLS) and Julio (Gael Garcia Bernal, AMORES PERROS), who think of nothing but sex, convince a beautiful 28-year-.. Read more
| Starring | Gael Garcia Bernal, Maribel Verdu, Diego Luna |
|---|---|
| Director | Alfonso Cuaron |
| Genres | Drama, Romance, World Cinema |
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This beautifully filmed, expertly acted film about two 17-year-old, middle class Mexican boys on summer break is deceivingly complex. The basic plot of the film is that best friends Tenoch (Diego Luna, BEFORE NIGHT FALLS) and Julio (Gael Garcia Bernal, AMORES PERROS), who think of nothing but sex, convince a beautiful 28-year-old woman, Luisa (Maribel Verdu), to go on a road trip with them to a nonexistent beach. They get lost. They flirt and giggle and fawn over Luisa hoping to win her over with their boyish charms. And that's about it. But that simple plotline merely provides structure for the poetry and meaning that is woven into the film with photography and narration. Periodically throughout the film, while the action continues normally, the sound stops. A voice over then gives information--sometimes a brief biography of one of the characters (birth date, name of father and mother, consequences of birth, primary childhood experiences), or a note about what each of the characters is really thinking, or a news report or historical comment that brings Mexico's tangled politics into the context of daily life. Never is the voice connected to a character in the film. It simply floats. Meanwhile, underwater photography, roving shots of the Mexican countryside, and affectionate close-ups on the characters communicate a solemnness that is not present in the plot. All of these pieces fit together easily, resulting in an excellent, whole, thoughtful film.
| Starring | Gael Garcia Bernal, Maribel Verdu, Diego Luna |
|---|---|
| Director | Alfonso Cuaron |
| Studio | ICON HOME ENTERTAINMENT |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 41 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Drama, Romance, World Cinema |
| Language | DVD: Spanish |
| Dubbed | English |
| Released | DVD: 07 Oct 2002 Production year: 2001 |
| Format | DVD |
Director Alfonso Cuarón's comic road movie became the biggest home-grown box-office hit in Mexican history and it's tempting to see it as a mere foreign-language version of American Pie or Road Trip. But there's more to it than sex (which, far from titillating, is shown in all its greedy, awkward teenage haste) as two high school graduates (played by Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal) borrow a car and head off for the mythical Heaven's Mouth beach with unhappily married older woman Luisa (Maribel Verdú). Throughout the journey, Cuarón highlights the economic rift between Mexico's middle classes and poor with comments by a deadpan narrator. It may not be in the same league as Amores Perros (which also starred superstar-in-waiting García Bernal), but it did lead to Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban for Cuarón.
A beautiful film - a touching portrait of teenage friendship and the angst/uncertainty/braggadocio that comes after puberty as young men/boys search for a sexual identity. It sounds heavy, but isn't - it's supremely watchable with touching emotional performances throughout, and the sexual energy is unbelievable.
Watch it!
This film got such great reviews that I expected more. I liked the landscape of Mexico and many of the camera angles were interesting. But nothing seemed to happen in the film except a lot of talking about and thinking about sex. I usually really enjoy road trip films. But not this one.
Mexican star Diego Luna is stepping behind the camera to make his directorial debut with a dramatic new movie. The Y Tu Mama Tambien actor will take charge of Abel, which is being produced by John Malkovich's compay Mr. Mudd. The film will unravel a family drama from the perspective of a young child, and will star Luna's Just Walking co-star Jose Maria Yazpik. Malkovich and his partners have lined up almost £2 million in funding from private investors and the Mexican state of... Read more