Rating: Summary: People must see behind the [] graphic content... Review: I would like to post my review here because a lot of people didn't see the theme of the movie because of the [] graphic content. From where I've came from, people find Y Tu Mama Tambien as merely a [] happy-go-lucky movie, which for me is not very much so. The audience is made to understand how everyone has its own issues through the narration although we can see that as the world is trying to die down, the three campers are having the time of their lives. We are made to understand how life can be so meaningful (to Lucia) knowing your days are numbered and a lesson learned (thru Julio and Tenoch). With the adequate performance of the actors, this movie is something that only comes once in a blue moon. I especially liked the last part when the narrator said that they won't see each other, but their dialogs say See You Soon. And when time comes when I won't be able to see a close friend no more, I'd say Gee Y Tu Mama Tambien!
Rating: Summary: Pleasantly surprised Review: I wasn't really sure what to expect from this movie. While searching through the racks of mindless comedies and action flicks, this one caught my eye. The first scene was quite a shocker-very graphic sex between two teens. It progressed to another couple and more sex. I was tempted to turn it off and then I began to get interested in the two boys who are the main characters. They are both spoiled and have never had any responsibility to face. They think only of sex,drugs and any other means of having a good time. With a long boring summer ahead, they lure an older woman, Luisa, into the road trip of a lifetime. During the drive, Luisa and the boys create a strange bond. They begin to really understand each other and learn from each other. Of course, they end up doing more than driving and talking. But Luisa is teaching them about much more than sex. The scene called Triple Seduction is by far the most seductive and passionate that I have ever seen on screen. There is no happy ending here. The message I took from the film was not to be afraid to really live when you have the chance because the realities of life don't always allow us that luxury. If you are offended by full nudity and sex scenes, you might want to get the R rated version but, in my opinion, the sex scenes are the most beautiful and heart wrenching parts of the film. It's not pornography by any means but it is realistic and that is what makes it so touching. Watch it, you won't regret it.
Rating: Summary: Mouth of Heaven Review: I've seen this film twice now and can say it improves with re-viewing. But in looking through some of the other customer reviews, I was amazed at how many who complained about lack of plot or purpose completely missed major thematic points being flagged by the creators. There's a lot going on in this road trip/coming-of-age film if you watch and listen carefully. No writer can call a beach The Mouth of Heaven (which is where the film's lead trio are driving to) without signaling, practically with flares, that he is making a thematic point. Consider how this one gets used: The two boys think they've just made up the name to con Luisa--they've no idea where they're headed. It later turns out that a beach called Mouth of Heaven actually does exist, and they are near it. In the end, only Luisa goes to it; the boys never see it. Backtrack for clues as to why the boys never see the Mouth of Heaven: For all their sex- and drugs-obsessed horseplay, they are not social equals. One comes from a privileged political family (part of the PRI ruling party in Mexico, now temporarily out of the presidency thanks to Vicente Fox) and the other, as he is unkindly reminded, is "peasant trash." They go to the same high school, but their post-graduation futures are going to be very different and that is what is really coming up on the horizon for them--not a celestial beach where they can honestly be friends forever. All through the boys' juvenile dialog, and highlighted in the omniscient voiceover, are details that point out not only how the pair aren't similar, but also how much they've already internalized the social attitudes that will inevitably pull their friendship apart. The poorer one lights matches in his friend's bathroom after he uses it; the richer one uses his foot to raise the toilet seat when he visits the other one's house. As Luisa comes to discern, their relationship, while often affectionate and close, is mostly a sham and riddled with unspoken secrets and class-derived mistrusts. Throughout the film, the creators take off on sidetracks to look at various aspects of Mexican life and culture. The film is clearly slanted toward non-Mexican audiences, because much of what they show is information to help outsiders understand the social realities facing these young men. Remember that the middle-class is much smaller in Mexico than in the US or Europe, so necessarily these two boys, while exuberantly individual, are also representing the largely dichotomized Mexican society in the way they inter-relate and yet remain separate and closed off. (Luisa, importantly, is Spanish, so she shares our view as an outsider; it is her job to help us uncover what is awry with this pair.) Try looking at the film from these deeper and more symbolic viewpoints and I think many viewers will find the creators have given their audience a lot to think about during the film, and many reasons to care about what happens to the protagonists. The sad last scene isn't just a gathering up of plotlines, for the news about Luisa IS anti-climactic for us. The emotional punch is in watching the boys as they finally get an inkling of what Luisa was trying to tell them about themselves on that trip, and then push the realization away.
Rating: Summary: hahahahahaha Review: Wow. You think people would learn after the horrendous Great Expectations (Gweneth Paltrow emotes like an anoerexic Valley Girl), Hollywood would have learned to not let this director near another project. But no such luck---and once again, he decided that a good story wasn;t worth it, so he manipulates it to a degree unheard of before this. Working with only the brainlessness Hollywood joke can, he decides to insult us by claiming uniqueness and making the story set in Mexico. Then he adds two boys for one girl so we can watch a feminist version of a good time--sleeping around. There is the only thing that garners praise in hollywood---sex. As long as you call it beautiful, they'll love you. Not surprising from a group of people so empty they decided to make American Pie and Can't hardly Wait. Hilariously bad. Can't wait for the sequel--And Your Little Dog, Too.
Rating: Summary: Hot, hot and tragic Review: A "coming of age" / erotic road-trip - not one to be missed. Ms. Verdu is a real presence here. This film is engaging, erotic, dramatic, sad and tragic....P>... - A Mexican film not to be missed.
Rating: Summary: Much different Review: My local video store only carried the R-rated version of this film. I was surprised to read that there was a more complete and unrated version and so I ordered it. I was immensely moved by the film when I first saw it and the unedited version adds to the understanding of the final product. If there is any disappointment it is that I do not have enough Spanish under my belt to understand the tracks where the actors discuss the film. The "Making of" featurette is another interesting addition to the experience. Some have written that the unrated version is more pornography than anything else. I could not disagree more. Great film--well worth your time.
Rating: Summary: not exactly what I was expecting Review: After seeing the trailer, I was very eager to see this movie. Sold as a voyage of self discovery with a naughty flavor about it, I was disappointed in the film. Mainly, I was hoping for something with more substance. The sex scenes are somewhat abundant, but I wouldn't necessarily call this soft porn. Other directors, such as Philip Kaufman, direct movies that are contain both eroticism and substance. Maybe I was expecting too much, but I couldn't help being reminded of junior high/high school locker rooms, and the juvenile sex talk that incurred there. On occasion, the main plot was interlaced with scenes of the political environment of Mexico. I enjoyed these scenes, but they never seemed to relate to the lives of the boys. After a while, they became tiresome because you see that the only thing that will appease the boy's horniness is a full divulsion of the truth regarding their sexual escapades; and in doing so, and explanation of the title. The ending left me wondering if anything had changed. Both boys seemed to have missed an opportunity to grow up, and instead of both of them going through a life-changing event, they just end up behaving like children on a playground. The director, however, does accomplish some good things in this picture. The cinematography is good; the movie contains many good visual sequences and I did enjoy getting another view of Mexico in this film. Overall, its decent. I was just hoping for something better.
Rating: Summary: Sexy, sweet, and sad Review: "Y Tu Mama Tambien," directed by Alfonso Cuaron, tells the story of two young guys in Mexico: Julio (played by Gael Garcia Bernal) and Tenoch (played by Diego Luna). When we meet them at the start of the film they are straddling that line between boyhood and manhood, and are interested mainly in hanging out, taking drugs, and having sex with their girlfriends. But there relationship is challenged when they take an erotically charged beach trip with a more mature woman named Luisa (Maribel Verdu). "Y Tu Mama" is a combination of road trip and coming-of-age story. The film is sexy and often very funny, but with an edge of sadness and introspection running throughout. A voiceover narration is effectively used as a cinematic device. The cast delivers superb performances. Verdu has an offbeat sexual allure and delivers a very touching performance. Luna and Garcia Bernal bring an appealing energy to their roles, and there is solid three way chemistry among them all. The film is full of visual appeal, and some scenes almost have a documentary feel. There is some wonderful footage of the people and places the trio encounter on their journey. The graphic nudity and sex scenes of the unrated version may be a bit much for some viewers, but I found this aspect of the film to be well integrated into the filmmakers' overall artistic vision. A story of lust, loss, and tenderness, "Y Tu Mama" is an enjoyable and moving film.
Rating: Summary: A Let Down Review: After a big build up of professional reviews and word of mouth, this movie turned out to be a real let down. First, the voiceover narration was distracting; the sound from the film cuts out, there's a pause, and then the narration begins. At first I thought it was an editorial mistake, but when it repeated, I realized it was deliberate -- and weird. Second, there was a key ingredient missing from the movie: a character to care about. I didn't care about the boys, or about Louisa. In fact, they all irritated me. Third, the ending. The revelation in the final scene felt familiar and forced, as if it was to give the previous hour and a half some kind of meaning. It felt cheap and dated. Fourth, a point about the girl, Louisa. The camera does not love her. She is not enjoyable to watch. This may sound petty, but so much of a movie depends on whether you enjoy watching the actors. Take Audrey T. of Amelie. She is wonderful to watch. But the Louisa character was not. She has an awkward way of moving, and her face is not very expressive. An example: There is a scene where she plays a record on a juke box. The camera pulls back as she moves toward us, grooving and dancing. It was startling. She does not know how to move, how to play to the camera. She was not engaging. Again, this may sound petty, but it is an important attribute of an actor to have screen presence, and she does not. Finally, the sex. You simply have to address this, because that's a lot of what the hype is about. Well, I saw the "R" version, so I'm not sure I can really comment on it. Others have, so take a look at some of the good points they make about the unrated version. As far as the R version, it was really no big deal, which is why it's rated R. But more importantly, it lacked passion and sensuality. It was sophomoric, as if a 15-year-old boy wrote the screenplay. When the movie concluded, I was like, "That was it? That was what everyone's been talking about?" Leave this one to the critics.
Rating: Summary: deeply disappointed....juvenile trash Review: I was sucked into all the hype about this movie which is perhaps one reason I was so disappointed. I enjoy foreign art movies. This wasn't one of them. Maybe I'm just too uptight for such juvenile stuff....maybe I missed too much in translation....maybe guys find this type of movie more entertaining...whatever. I ended up donating my copy to the local public library because I knew I'd never watch it again. Big on farting jokes....jerk-off jokes....boring.
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