Y tu mama tambien

I was somewhat disappointed with the last film. I feel there are probably other films more appropriate for a classroom setting that would have told the same story. However, I really do feel that teens need an incredible amount of love and support, and most of all...parental supervision! I think most parents strive to be a better parent than their own and as technology expands it is harder and harder to keep up with what your children are doing. I feel that old fashioned everyone at the dinner table and talking and everyone helps clean up after is very important. I don't recall seeing any parents in the film except the girlfriends' when they were at the airport. Without seeing the whole film I still feel this was a very sad film, that the boys were so lost without any family interaction that they persued this reckless lifestyle. And I also felt the young woman Luisa was so unfortunate and without direction because she too had been without a supportive family, parents who had died when she was young and the aunt whom she took care of until she died. I think you should reconsider showing this film in class and if you continue to show it always keep it at the end. It was a real downer after all the wonderful films before.

El Viaje de Carol

I find this to be the most difficult of all the posts we have had since I didn't know what was being said in the film. I considered watching the movie now with subtitles but decided not to wait for the library to get the movie in since this usually takes several days. Not having seen her in her American home it is very difficult for me to compare her new culture. I didn't feel that she had to adapt too much, she already spoke fluent Spanish because of her mother. She met many new people, her grandfather and her aunt and uncle and cousins(?) I don't know if she had met them previously. She seemed to easily make friends with the children she came in contact with. I didn't find the beginning scene where her hat was taken to be very different from any child moving to a new area, whether it was a new city, state or country. Having been a child whose parents moved around a lot, I frequently was in a situation where I had to make new friends and start over again. I did think that the hardest part she had to adapt to was being without her father and knowing he was at war and in constant danger. She seemed relatively happy while her mother was alive. Her mother apparently was able to read and write in English because after she died she had to have Maruca's help to write to her father. I am not sure if she attended church before the move or what religion she practiced but this was an obvious change for her as she seemed somewhat out of place during communion. Also, the revolution going on around her must have been confusing too. After her mother died she must have felt very alone, it was good that she felt so close to her grandfather. I am not sure what happened to her father, and assume that she was returning to America in the end to be with him. The film seemed to be very touching and I probably will watch it with subtitles, just to see what I missed.

Volver

I think that this movie is a tribute to women and their resilience because Raimunda had lived through a terrible tragedy, being impregnated by her own father while her mother stood by and did nothing. She still managed to raise a wonderful daughter, and while she worked very hard for what she had by performing many different jobs, she still persevered. She immediately believed her daughter when she learned what had happened and never once questioned her or tried to blame her. Raimunda should have gone to the authorities, but seemed to do a pretty good job of covering up for her daughter. I think she did not want her daughter to have to go through a trial or the embarrassment of telling anyone what had happened. Raimunda and Sole also had survived the fire that presumably killed their parents and still seemed to have pretty good lives. Sole ran the illegal beauty shop to support herself, her husband had been missing for two years. I thought for sure that there would be a story about that in the end, explaining what happened to him, but there was not.
Can you identify the tension between superstitious beliefs and real life aspects through the film? Provide at least two examples. I think the biggest example is that people actually saw Irene caring for Aunt Paula and assumed that she was a ghost. No one questioned that Irene might actually be there and someone should investigate where Augustina's mother really was. Also during the shooting of the television show with Augustina it is said the town where she lived had the highest rate of insanity. I'm am not sure if that was true, or because the people were so immersed in their superstitious beliefs that it made others think they were crazy. This was a wonderful film.

Guantanamera

I think the first aspect of Hispanic culture that I noticed was the machismo.The way Adolpho treated Gina, telling her what to wear and how to style her hair. Mariano was so blatantly running around with so many different women, much like Ivan in Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown. I felt these two movies were very similar. I also noticed the selling of goods on the street, how odd that would be here in our area to have someone bring large ropes of garlic(?) to your car window while stopped at a traffic light, or a whole bunch of bananas! This does happen on a smaller scale here, people do sell candy and flower curbside to raise money for different reasons especially around holidays. One of the most odd was when I heard Adolfo speaking of the "permit" he had obtained for travel for four people. We only need a permit, or passport, when we go to different countries. I guess this is something like that. I do not recall anyone checking their permit along the way. Something else that seemed very common or natural for them was when the truck would stop at points along the way people climbed aboard like it was public transportation. It was very dangerous, no seats or seatbelts. Just a load of people standing in the back hanging on to the boards to keep them from falling when the truck stopped and started. It seemed there was always some nice salsa music playing, except when Caudido asked the driver to turn it off so that he could morn properly. I think last thing that really struck me was the vision of the girl who seemed to represent death. I assume there is a strong belief in spirits, the truck driver was performing some type of ritual on the truck before their trip. Aunt Yoyita saw her in a photo right before she died and Caudido acutally saw her several times before his death. Adolpho asked her for help when he was standing alone on the stone column, did he die also?

The Official Story

Gaby's future is uncertain. Alicia is definetly going to search for the truth. Whether or not Roberto tries to stop her is another concern. The ties that Roberto has seem to be able to keep people from talking. He knew of Anna's kidnap and torture without being told by Alicia. I hope that Alicia finds that the woman who was protesting was actually Gaby's grandmother and she is given custody of the child. I can't imagine how they would investigate this, I think the movie was in the early 1980's I know that they were capable of genetic testing at the time but would it even be permitted because might it prove that what was being protested on the streets was actually true. The government would be found to be guilty of the crimes it was being charge with by the public. I believe that Roberto truly loved Alicia and Gaby and wanted nothing but the best for them. I don't think he would have gone to the lengths that he did to "adopt" Gaby if he didn't really love Alicia. I think Roberto,Alicia, Gaby, and the possible grandmother would also disappear if Roberto persues the truth. The men that he associated with seemed to be powerful political people, They made Andrada vanish, I am sure that they wouldn't hesitate to do it again to protect their cause, whatever that was. His job seemed somewhat mysterious. I thought this movie was a little slow, maybe my least favorite. It was very sad that Alicia just accepted the baby and never questioned where Gaby came from until the students and Ana raised her suspicions.

Como Agua Para Chocolate

There were many very interesting characters in this film. The first being the mother, Mama Elena. It is difficult to know if she was always so angry, or if this occurred with the death of her husband. The way she treated Tita with such hatred was shocking. It was as though Tita were born a servant, and not her own flesh and blood. Although she was not much kinder to her other children. You know the thought had to have crossed her mind. Nacha was a wonderful character who shaped Tita into the wonderful, caring person that she was. The skills she bestowed upon Tita, the ability to cook and to nurse those who were in need are what enabled Tita to get through the tormented days she endured until her mother died. How sad for Tita that Nach died when she did. Gertrudis, WOW. She knew she had to get away from her mother as quickly as she could, and she did. Another blow to Tita, who was now alone with her mother, Pedro and Rosaura and the baby. I was very happy to hear Gertrudis tell Tita that she shouln't worry about how Rosauro felt when she married Pedro knowing he and Tita were in love. Pedro was so in love with Tita that he married her sister just to be close to her. Even though I wanted Tita and Pedro to be together I was disappointed when they did make love before Rosaura died. Maybe if they had run away I would have been more understanding, I just felt that he should leave Rosaura before he was with Tita. I think I really wanted Tita to marry Dr. John Brown and live happily ever after. He was so kind, and seemed to only want the best for Tita. He was so unselfish that he agreed to marry Tita even though he knew she had slept with Pedro. I really felt that he loved her even more than Pedro. I really enjoyed this movie.

Motorcycle Diaries

I feel there were several scenes in the film that revealed how Che's personality was shaped to be a future leader. I feel the most important one was when he was with his family saying goodbye. He was genuinely happy for all of his siblings and his parents to be there and hugged them all and expressed his feelings for them before he left on the motorcycle. His upbringing in a happy nurturing family was his strong base. The next scene that really seemed to touch him was when he met the couple on their way to the mine to find work. They had left their child with other family after losing their home to someone who had more money. They were cold, tired and exhausted, but were still trying to make a living. When he gave them something to drink and a blanket to warm them they seemed very appreciative. Later in the film you learn he gave the fifteen dollars that his girlfriend had given him to purchase American underwear to this couple. He could have spent that money on so many things along the way, when they were cold and hungry, when the motorcycle was not running. He became even more enraged when the miners were chosen and made to climb into the truck, they were hungry and thirsty and the foreman was only concerned that the potential miners were quick about leaving. I felt that as each day passed he saw more and more that made him want to change things to help those who were not well off. He saw farmers on his way to machu pichu who had had their land taken away. The working class who were being towed in the small boat behind the luxurious ship he was riding in on his way to stay at the Leper colony. It is obvious his friend Mial does not feel as passionate as he does about the sites that they see along the way. Is it because Mial is older than him and feels that he cannot change anything, or is it that Che feels that he cannot go on watching the injustice continue?

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

I thought the over the top interactions are what made the movie so humorous. I think some of the feelings were over reacted, but often times people do over react about big upsets in their lives.
I do not really think there is a big difference between women in the film and today's American women. As nurses, we often see patients and/or their families over react. At times it is understandable given the situation at that time. But there are also times that the reaction is not warranted. Years ago I worked at a nursing home where a patient's family member actually brought a hammer in and tried to hit the patient's nurse with it because she didn't think she was doing a good job! No one was hurt, but I think over reacting is pretty common everywhere!
I thought the plot was good. Ivan was a terrible womanizer, but the women he was with knew what he was doing so on some level they were just as guilty. Pepa knew he was married, I think. But even though his marriage was still legal, they had not been together in years because she was in the mental institution. So, maybe Pepa was not really guilty, but the lawyer woman was. She watched every event unfold and yet she still hopped on the plane with Ivan knowing he was married and had a scorned lover!
I don't think there is much of a difference between Spanish American women and Spanish European women other than location.
I thought the movie was cute, but at times predictable.

Machuca

I thought the attitudes that the boys displayed did show how they were raised. Machuca was at first a bit unwilling to make friends with the others. It wasn't until he saw that Gonzalo was really going to make an effort to be friends that he let his guard down. I was very impressed with Gonzalo for going to Machuca's "neighborhood". He could have been so frightened and disgusted that he wouldn't go back, but he returned on many occassions. I was saddened by Machuca's response when he saw Gonzalo's room and all of his belongings. I really didn't notice Gonzalo make a big deal about the differences in their lives until the end when he said to the guard, "look at me! I don't belong here!" They had a much better friendship than Gonzalos and the little blonde boy who was such a bad kid.
The social classes were very obvious. Machuca didn't have his own room or bed, while Gonzalo had a closet full of clothes and his own books. They had running water and electricity. I really commend Father McEnroe for trying so hard to make the children be friends. He was a wonderful man and teacher. I was very impressed by Machuca standing up in the end to say goodbye to Father McEnroe. The courage that it took for him to do this was immense. I was happy that all the others then stood up also, but it is easier to rise with a group than to lead alone.
I think the film is to show that we are all equal. People should not be treated badly because of where they live, or what clothes they wear. The laws should be the same for everyone. I was appalled by the way the people living in poverty were being rounded up in the end of the film. The film was very sad, but I think it is a lesson to look around and see what is really going on around you.

Under The Same Moon

I really enjoyed this film. I feel that most of us have no idea what it feels like to want something so bad that we would leave our child behind, swim across a river, risk going to jail, and start life over again the way Carlito's mother did. I am also pretty sure most of our children have never experienced anything like Carlito did. Just watching the way his mother worked several jobs to save money for Carlito to be with her, knowing an unscrupulous lawyer had already taken thousands of dollars from her and she could take no action against him because she was not a legal citizen was very impressive, and shame on the lawyer. It was as though she and Carlito both would let nothing get in the way of their being together. The movie brought out so many emotions. Distrust of Carlito's uncle who only wanted to take care of him to get the money that his mother sent. Horror at the couple who helped Carlito across the border when they allowed him to be towed away in the van where he could have died from the heat, too afraid of what might happen to them if they spoke up. Paco was so honorable, wanting to help Carlito's mother by marrying her so she then would become a US citizen. And shame on the woman who fired his mother for being young, and not paying her for the time she had already worked. The stranger who helped Carlito and never let him down after he realized how resourceful the boy was, was a very caring man in the end, he was probably arrested and returned to Mexico. I would definetly recommend this movie to other's, even with the subtitles