Popi

Rating:
Summary: once seen, never forgotten
Review: 'Popi'' is one of those films you never forget, so real and moving.Alan Arkin is playing it straight and gets to your heart, without getting sentimental or anything. I loved this picture when I saw it, about 20 years ago and I wish I could get it on video ; let me know if and when, please !

Rating:
Summary: Rated G? No way!
Review: A good film and indeed timely in regard to the Elian case. But for the life of me I can't imagine how it received a G rating. There is one scene in particular in which the two boys have been beaten up and striped naked and I mean totally naked with everything showing! SOUTH PARK was rated R due to some bad language. Can someone please explain this.

Rating:
Summary: Alan Arkin is God..
Review: A marvelous film, even after all these years. Arkin is a terrific actor and his touching performance is great. The 2 kids are wondeful also. Finally on video!!

Rating:
Summary: Splendid! Heart-warming!
Review: As is, there aren't many films that gives us an inside view of the issues that affect Latino families in the culture of urban poverty. This film does, both with humor, and serious drama. It's sad. We can still find silly films dated earlier than 1970 that do not compare in excellence to "Popi's" script and message. Yet this film cannot be located anywhere. Filmed in Spanish Harlem with two young Puerto Rican aspiring actors, and the lovely and talented Rita Moreno, this film should be shown to students training as social workers, or sociologists interested in the psycho-socio-cultural issues in the Latino urban reality. Alan Arkin does a wonderful job playing a Latino father. If you folks at amazon.com can reverse this trend, please do so.

Rating:
Summary: Alan Arkin is God..
Review: Before there was Elian Gonzalez, there was "Popi". In a amazing and convincing performance, Alan Arkin plays Abraham Rodriguez, a Puerto Rican father of two small boys living in New York's Spanish Harlem. Working three jobs with only five hours of sleep a night, Abraham only wants the best for his kids as he struggles to provide them a roof over their heads and food on the table, especially after the death of his wife.

However, the mean streets of the city and the poverty-stricken neighborhood he resides only causes him to worry about his children's welfare. After his children suffer a series of violent attacks, Abraham gets fed up with life in "El Barrio" and devises his plan in trying to give his children a better life he can't provide them.

By doing research and educating the boys, Abraham sets his sons adrift in a rowboat off the coast of Miami, hoping that the Coast Guard picks them up as Cuban refugees. After they are rescued, his ultimate goal is that a wealthy family adopts them to give them an upbringing that would give the greater opportunities than they would have if they lived in the ghetto.

However, the human heart is a powerful weapon, and after the boys long for their "Popi," Abraham starts to miss them and tries to see them by all means necessary, leading to a hilarious chase, and finally an emotional ending to a scheme-gone wrong.

Arkin's performance as Abraham is convincing and amazing in every sense. His mastering of an English accent with hints of Spanish is incredible, seeing that Arkin is not Puerto Rican. Rita Moreno is excellent as Lupe, although her appearance in the film is rather limited. Newcomers Miguel Alejandro (Junior) and Ruben Figueroa (Luis) are excellent as Abraham's two sons. Alejandro's role reminded me a lot of Thomas Melly's role of Lil' Chino in another Puerto Rican movie filmed in New York City, "I Like It Like That". This film will pull many emotional strings, especially when Abraham parts with his children on a dark Floridian beach.

There are many memorable lines and scenes throughout the scene, however my favorite one has to be Abraham's accidential appearance at a Cuban democracy rally at a New York hotel. At the rally, Abraham who is waitering, is brought to the stage by a few Cubans, who think he is one of the six men who participated in the Bay of Pigs invasion fiasco. After a roll call of the names of the veterans and their chanting "Que Vive Cuba Libre" (Long Live a Free Cuba!) Abraham is faced with a crowd anxious to hear him talk. His line which is probably the funniest pro-Puerto Rican chant to ever heard in a film is a must see for anyone who is Puerto Rican or an admirer of the island and its' people.

The film which was rated "G" back in 1969 is far too intense for a child. With today's standards this film would have received a PG-13 rating due to violence, nudity, and powerful scenes of child discipline. If this film was released before the Elian Gonzalez conflict started, then many, especially many ignorant politicians in the United States might have understood the feelings a child has for their parents. Ignorance is bliss, and as we saw in this film and real life, not all the toys in the world can buy a child's love over that of their love for their parent(s).

"Popi" is definately a contemporary classic in American cinema. The film gives an accurate portrait of life among Latinos living in New York's toughest neighborhoods. Director Arthur Hiller ("Love Story") did an excellent job of depicting life in the ghetto with sensitivity and grace. The film's beautiful score and charming theme song by Dominic Frontiere are captivating and memorable. I recommend this film to everyone, and especially to anyone wanting to understand the effects of the Puerto Rican diaspora in the United States.

Rating:
Summary: An Eternal Classic in American Cinema
Review: Before there was Elian Gonzalez, there was "Popi". In a amazing and convincing performance, Alan Arkin plays Abraham Rodriguez, a Puerto Rican father of two small boys living in New York's Spanish Harlem. Working three jobs with only five hours of sleep a night, Abraham only wants the best for his kids as he struggles to provide them a roof over their heads and food on the table, especially after the death of his wife.

However, the mean streets of the city and the poverty-stricken neighborhood he resides only causes him to worry about his children's welfare. After his children suffer a series of violent attacks, Abraham gets fed up with life in "El Barrio" and devises his plan in trying to give his children a better life he can't provide them.

By doing research and educating the boys, Abraham sets his sons adrift in a rowboat off the coast of Miami, hoping that the Coast Guard picks them up as Cuban refugees. After they are rescued, his ultimate goal is that a wealthy family adopts them to give them an upbringing that would give the greater opportunities than they would have if they lived in the ghetto.

However, the human heart is a powerful weapon, and after the boys long for their "Popi," Abraham starts to miss them and tries to see them by all means necessary, leading to a hilarious chase, and finally an emotional ending to a scheme-gone wrong.

Arkin's performance as Abraham is convincing and amazing in every sense. His mastering of an English accent with hints of Spanish is incredible, seeing that Arkin is not Puerto Rican. Rita Moreno is excellent as Lupe, although her appearance in the film is rather limited. Newcomers Miguel Alejandro (Junior) and Ruben Figueroa (Luis) are excellent as Abraham's two sons. Alejandro's role reminded me a lot of Thomas Melly's role of Lil' Chino in another Puerto Rican movie filmed in New York City, "I Like It Like That". This film will pull many emotional strings, especially when Abraham parts with his children on a dark Floridian beach.

There are many memorable lines and scenes throughout the scene, however my favorite one has to be Abraham's accidential appearance at a Cuban democracy rally at a New York hotel. At the rally, Abraham who is waitering, is brought to the stage by a few Cubans, who think he is one of the six men who participated in the Bay of Pigs invasion fiasco. After a roll call of the names of the veterans and their chanting "Que Vive Cuba Libre" (Long Live a Free Cuba!) Abraham is faced with a crowd anxious to hear him talk. His line which is probably the funniest pro-Puerto Rican chant to ever heard in a film is a must see for anyone who is Puerto Rican or an admirer of the island and its' people.

The film which was rated "G" back in 1969 is far too intense for a child. With today's standards this film would have received a PG-13 rating due to violence, nudity, and powerful scenes of child discipline. If this film was released before the Elian Gonzalez conflict started, then many, especially many ignorant politicians in the United States might have understood the feelings a child has for their parents. Ignorance is bliss, and as we saw in this film and real life, not all the toys in the world can buy a child's love over that of their love for their parent(s).

"Popi" is definately a contemporary classic in American cinema. The film gives an accurate portrait of life among Latinos living in New York's toughest neighborhoods. Director Arthur Hiller ("Love Story") did an excellent job of depicting life in the ghetto with sensitivity and grace. The film's beautiful score and charming theme song by Dominic Frontiere are captivating and memorable. I recommend this film to everyone, and especially to anyone wanting to understand the effects of the Puerto Rican diaspora in the United States.

Rating:
Summary: Funny and Original Film
Review: How far would a Puerto Rican father go to get a news story? Well if it involves putting his two kids on a raft and make the public believe they are Cuban refugees, you know that you are watching an orginal and funny film on what people would do for money and attention. Arkin gives a wonderful performance and although the film is no longer on video, it should be rereleased for many future generations to enjoy.

Rating:
Summary: Superb! warmhearting, a must see for any latin Newyorker
Review: I am 39 years from NYC and I saw this movie 29 years ago, The plot is excellent, the actors are sensational to include the children, It's the story of a spanish father trying to raise two boys in NYC then decides to send them off on a raft to paradise. A must see for who ever lived in NYC during the 70's.

Rating:
Summary: i love this movie
Review: I first saw this film maybe 18, 20 years ago on broadcast tv one Sunday afternoon. Never heard of it before that day, but never forgot it after that day. I was around ten years old then, and enjoyed it so much, partly because the first half of the movie is all New York, but mostly because it was very touching, a simple yet very moving story. Its power is so subtle, it's a shame this movie isn't better regarded as great as it is. To this day, my eyes still well up when the youngest son screams "I hate you" to his father as he realizes Popi is sending them off into dangerous waters by themselves. Great performances all around, especially Alan Arkin. WHY THE HELL ISN'T THIS VIDEO AVAILABLE?

Rating:
Summary: GREAT MOVIE
Review: I LOVED THIS MOVIE IN MY YOUTH IN THE 70'S AND HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR IT FOR MANY YEARS. I WAS SO GLAD TO FIND IT HERE !
I LIKE THE NOSTOLGIC 1960'S NEW YORK CITY FEEL TO THIS MOVIE.
THIS MOVIE HAS A HAPPY ENDING TO ME, BECUASE THE TWO BOYS HAVE THEIR SAY IN WHAT THEY WANT AND NEED OUT OF THERE LIVES. THEY ARE ABLE TO SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES AND ARE ON THEIR WAY TO COMMING OF AGE NICELY, . ITS A FEEL GOOD FILM ABOUT LOVE, REALLY.