By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.75 cats | 3.9
Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Starring: Diego Luna | Gael García Bernal | Maribel Verdú | Marta Aura
Country: mexico, united_states
Year: 2002
Running time: 105
IMDB: http://us.imdb.com/Details?0245574
Ellen says: “I can see that MAMA might be a ‘teen movie’ because it is about teens and has those silly things that teens do – fart jokes, drinking, etc as noted by others. But, I felt these elements were there just because that is part of the life of the people at the center of the film rather than that they were driving force of the film in the way that they are in films like AMERICAN PIE. I thought the filmmaker/screenwriter did a great job of dealing with difficult themes while not stereotyping the characters as stupid teen boys (and we all know many of them – on screen and in real life). Overall, I enjoyed the film. And, I really enjoyed that the sexual elements were dealt with in a refreshing way.” 4 cats
Esmé says: “Ay caramba! I am sweating just thinking about this film. Anyone who knows me knows I loved Y TU MAMA. I won’t describe the plot, because I think everyone must know it. It was sad, truthful and shot really nicely. I liked the stupid horniness of the boys, the simultaneous daring, strength and vulnerability of Luisa. I loved the shots of the side of the rode as they drove to the beach. One thing tho’–while I thought the voiceovers that gave ‘statistical’ information about what happened later, or what did happen before, was really interesting and added depth to the story and made the viewer contemplate the country Mexico, I didn’t like the way the dialog was suddenly muted for the voiceover.”
Phred says: “I saw this Mexican film recently, (Spanish with English subs) and had mixed feelings. It was well made, energetic and fun, but I found parts of it unbelievable.
“Two teenaged and highly-sexed best friends meet a beautiful young married woman, and end up taking a trip to a mythical beach with her. There’s lots of sex, infidelity, and questions of infidelity. The woman takes charge and tries to educate them.
“It explores the relationship between the boys, and their enthusiasm is nice. However the motivation and story of the woman and how she acts, which I won’t reveal, don’t ring true.
“One excellent part is that it portrays Mexico in an exciting and fun light, which you don’t often see. It makes me want to visit. ”
Jane says: “Finally got to see this wonderful Mexican film that was highly recommended, and I enjoyed it very much. It was a relief to be able to view an honest account of how teenagers deal with relationships and sexuality. It was also fascinating to see the politics of Mexico portrayed in the background of many scenes – leading class corruption, protests by liberals fighting for rights, and especially the scary police presence we all hear so much about. It appears the threat from them is as bad as the threats from any criminal element. And there was that sneaking subtext of a native Indian population being marginalized and semi-enslaved. The ending rang so true…nothing wrapped up in a neat little package, just the emotionally wounded trying to get on with their lives.
“I did notice one problem with the soundtrack and wonder if anyone else experienced this. Whenever the narrator began to speak, there would be a split second drop out on the soundtrack, and then one would hear his voice alone instead of hearing it over the ambient background noise, such as traffic, etc. I found this to be quite distracting. (I did see the film in a second run theatre….)”
Scot responds: “Oh I rather liked that, Jane. Just as you become involved in the action onscreen, you’re reminded that you are merely an outside observer, not one of the participants. Kind of an auditory alienation effect, in the good, Brechtian sense.”
Laura says: “Luna and Bernal are perfect as attractive boys from opposite social strata who, while mostly decent, frequently act like complete jerks. But the film belongs to the marvelous Verdu, a sexy slip of an earth mother who mourns her tragedies in private and embraces life in public. It’s a touching performance.” 4 cats
For Laura’s complete review: “http://www.reelingreviews.com/ytumamatambien.htm”
Michael says: “Well, I have a feeling I’m going to be in the minority on this one… and let me preface by saying that Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN was a prettyy good movie. Let me even say that I enjoyed it for the most part. The acting was great, the filmmaking accomplished, it was fun and refreshing…
“But you know what? Despite the weaving into the narrative of issues like politics, economics, sex, love, death… a teen movie is at its core, a teen movie for me. There are teen movies I enjoy… DONNIE DARKO springs directly to mind, but I’m sure if I thought about it I’d be able to come up with several more. But the raunchy, sex, drinking, farting teen movie generally bores me. Y TU MAMA didn’t bore me, but the framework (the fact that it was structured as a teen movie) kept me distanced from the characters. I didn’t really care about any of the three characters, and that made it hard for me to fully appreciate the film.
“Director Alfonso Cuarón does a nice job in weaving the serious issues into the framework of the story. His use of narration was interesting, although occasionally overdone. I rather enjoyed the reactions (or more accurately lack of reactions) of the main characters when faced with poverty, or death, or corruption.” 3 cats
Nathaniel R. says: “Along with MONSOON WEDDING, the best that movie theaters have offered in 2002. Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN is like a great rebuke to Hollywood for decades of stupid-ass teen sex comedies. See, you can make intelligent motion pictures that deal with horny guys. Director Alfonse Cuaron teams with one my all time favorite cinematographers Emmanuel Lubeski for this affecting, rowdy, and honest road film.
“Imagine this: A sex comedy where the sex actually a) makes sense b) leads the characters somewhere emotionally c) doesn’t shy away from painful truths or cater to mainstream sensibilities …and d) isn’t portrayed as tragedy like it is in every goddamn other film. Then imagine that this film is a worldwide hit, too. Will the wonders never cease? Add to its list of significant pleasures another clear indication of how big a star Gael Garcia Bernal could become internationally… and you have a Must See film.”
Nathaniel T. says: “After much hype and pomp, this ended up exceeding my expectations. Three good leads, great screenplay, great cinematography, and interesting themes. I was engaged 100% of the time, and for the first time in a while, I found myself sad to see the end of the film. Gael Garcia Bernal is officially the New Best Thing, and Maribel Verdu is also remarkable. On the whole, one of the best things so far this year.” 4 cats
Scot says: “A lot of folks keep referring to this as ‘A Teen Movie’ or even ‘A Smart Teen Movie’ and I have to butt in and say: don’t buy into this definition. A teen movie is a movie *made* for a teenage audience, and I think most of us would agree that the complex themes of Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN have nothing to do with fart jokes, getting laid, or heavy drinking. The two main characters behave in an adolescent manner because they are adolescents, not to entertain us. If you’re searching for a genre for the film, I think it’s ‘Coming of Age Film,’ like SPLENDOR IN THE GRASS, SET ME FREE, or … hmm. SHANE. I’d just hate to hear that someone missed the film because they thought it was another AMERICAN PIE.”
Michael responds: “I’ll admit, as I was writing my review, I was a little uncomfortable calling it ‘A Teen Movie,’ because as Scot (and I believe, I) said, it’s so much more. I almost called it a ‘coming of age film, but I didn’t because I usually LOVE that genre of film. And, despite the fact that I did really like Y TU MAMA, there was something distancing me form the characters, and I’m not sure what that was. However, it was a flaw from me, hence, I liked it, but didn’t love it.”
I hope Phred is not male. I find their comment regarding “how a woman would act” to be very unfortunate. As if so many of us aren’t desperate inside for that excuse that lets us act recklessly and without regard for propriety. Have you taken a poll from women as to how many have seen a teen boy and wanted to act as a man would towards him. But we can’t be the hypocrite, the bad influence, take what we want. Our devils never win. But we desire. And this film releases that deliciously.