Casa de los Babys

Rating:
Summary: beautifully Shot, Well-Acted, But Not Strong as a Whole
Review: John Sayles' lastest film is exactly what you expect from this acclaimed director -- social issue seen with a very warm, tender, and most of all sympathetic viewpoint. Its no indictment about anything, and that's a good thing -- even though it deals with the serious matter like adoption of babies, especially when the babies are Latin-American (of unnamed country in South America) and the adoptive mothers are mostly Americans (and one Irish). I for one think Sayles could, and perhaps should have treated the issue with 'edge.' But that's my viewpoint, not his, yes, I know.

Anyway, the story is as I explained. You see an good ensemble of cast -- six white women coming to a country where they haveto stay before the legal process of adoption is completed. They are -- Maggie Gyllenhaal, Daryl Hannah, Marcia Gay Harden, Susan Lynch, Lili Taylor, and Mary Steenburgen. They heve their own past left in their home, which will be revealed during their conversations.

In the meanwhile, the film also introduces the people living there -- street kids, a young pregnat girl, and the manager of the hotel (Rita Moreno) where the six aforementioned residents stay. And one of the workers at hotel also has a sad story to tell.

What is most admirable thing about 'Casa de los Babies' is its unanimously good acting from female playes. I once thought that I would bever be surprised if Marcia Gay Harden show another good acting 8after watching 'Pollock,' and I was mistaken. She shows another great performance as Nan, whose foul-mouthed personality is so complex and relaistic that you just cannot predict the next thing she might say.

Another scene-stealer is Rita Moreno, who rarely shows up on screen. This Oscar/Tony/Emmy/Grammy Award winner presents the realistic image of a reluctant but independent hotel manager who knows the hotel, no matter how she likes or not, is the only means for her to financially survive in this country.

What I complain about the film is that John Sayles took away the identity of the place. It was shot in Mexico, but I never hear that Mexican children adopted as the film shows. Of course, the film is bout one fictional country. But as you know, Latin America is as diverse as the USA itself -- Brazil is as much a different country from Argentina as Texas from Florida. By blurring the location, the film lost the punch that only the detailed characteristics can really show, as other films like, say, 'City of God' did.

Another point. Sayles' warmhearted appraoch makes the film less real than it should be. As allegory, it is not strong, and as reality, it lacks power.

Beautifully shot, and capturing the hot air of the place, the film is a showcase for the players here. But as far as its story goes, it is not as surprising as it should be (you should know the story of Angelina Jolie and many other celebrities). But perhaps that is the point.

Rating:
Summary: BLARG
Review: Maggie Gyllenhaal is super-hot and John Sayles rules about 75% of the time, so I figured I really couldn't go wrong with this. With classics like MATEWAN, LIMBO, and LONE STAR under his belt, there's no way I'll miss any of his projects.

But I can't help thinking that maybe I should start.

While CASA DE LOS BABYS is much less boring and way less pedantic than 2002's SUNSHINE STATE, Sayles still can't pick himself off the ground.

The story concerns a group of American women who have been going through the very slow-moving adoption process somewhere in South America. Sayles shows us that the longer the process takes, the more profitable it is for the country's economy, as the women have to stay in their hotels and buy their food, etc.

The women all have various neuroses, even Gyllenhaal's seemingly dim-witted upper-class housewife breaks down on the phone to her somewhat demanding husband. I don't know if Marcia Gay Harden's character is supposed to be from California, but she sure acts like it: never content with any level of service, criticizing everyone, placing herself on a pedestal, and never considering other's feelings. Darryl Hannah's under-developed character hides the pain of three miscarriages by excessive exercising, Lily Tomlin is a cynical New Yorker and a suspected lesbian, Mary Steenburgen is a recovering alcoholic, and then there's some ugly, annoying Irish chick.

Which brings me to probably the biggest problem with this film: it's so transparent. Sayles pulls easy, emotional punches that are guaranteed to have us declaring him a genius through our tears. Aside from annoying montages of ugly babies (people, please -- babies are not cute, they're disgusting, and I don't care; to paraphrase Bill Hicks, 1 sperm out of billions finding its way to an egg and shooting out a baby nine months later is NOT a miracle [not to mention all the people all over the world selfishly squirting out more kids who suck up resources simply because they can't a) buy a condom or b) deal with their own mortality]), we're subjected to one of the most condescending, unrealistic, transparent scenes I've witnessed in a long time. Ugly Annoying Irish Chick is in her hotel room when the Spanish-speaking maid comes in to clean. From there, they both share stories of their kids (again, who CARES??) while not understanding a word each other is saying, but feeling the d e e p emotion of it all. C'mon, Sayles. That's sickening.

There's not as much proselytizing here as there was in SUNSHINE STATE, but the overall product is still very mediocre, and ol' John needs to get his act together before he gets behind the camera again.