Y Tu Mama Tambien

Starring: Diego Luna, Gael Garcia Bernal, Maribel Verdu, Diana Bracho
Directed by: Alfonso Cuaron
Rating: R
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Drama
2002

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Two young men (Diego Luna Gael Garcia Bernal) embark of a road trip with the unhappy wife (Maribel Verdu) of their cousin.

Review:

Tim: I finally watched Y Tu Mama Tambien because I was interested in seeing more of Alfonso Cuaron's work. He has emerged as one of the better directors working today, so I was intrigued about this Spanish language film from earlier in his career. I'd certainly heard of the film, but never actually watched it. I left the movie feeling very impressed by Cuaron's ability to establish memorable characters and the level of drama he was able to create. This movie is a powerful look at youth, love, sex, and life. It felt more intimate, more authentic than most movies like this. There isn't a hint of Hollywood in this foreign language film and that's a wonderful thing.

I liked how Cuaron approached the characters and the settings in this film. It feels genuine, oftentimes dirty and realistic- there's no glitz or glamor here. The characters are flawed, complicated. The relationships are depicted in a bit of a pessimistic light, but it felt authentic to experiences many people have. The film was noteworthy for its depiction of sex, but I felt like it was always done as representative of what happens in real life- it was never gratuitous. We often don't see films this truthful in Hollywood, which is a big reason why the film is able to differentiate itself from all those others. While I don't think this is Cuaron's best work, you have to love the intimate, loving way he explores these naive characters on this unforgettable road trip.

The cast makes a big difference. I really enjoyed Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal here. They weren't characters I especially liked, but I was able to sympathize with them, to remember what it was like at that age- when you want so badly to be taken seriously, to be worldly, when the truth is you're anything but that. I've read Luna and Bernal are real-life friends and that makes sense, as their connection felt authentic. So much of the film's best moments come from the interaction between these two- whether that's pleasure in their friendship, competition against each other, or portraying a sense of bitter betrayal. The two of them worked quite well together. You also have to give great credit to Maribel Verdu. She had perhaps the hardest role of the three. She needed to covey real emotion- heartbroken while trying to hold her life together, to move on with the time she has. She enters the lives of Luna and Bernal and her presence immediately puts strain on their relationship. The exploration of what that looks like, how it changes and evolves their relationships, is fascinating to watch. That's the biggest strength of the film. Cuaron deserves great credit for how he handles it, but he needed his cast to step up to that challenge. Luna, Bernal, and Verdu do that and more. It's interesting how Luna and Bernal have become much more famous than Verdu in the United States, but it's Verdu's performance I mentally come back to in this film.

Cuaron has done a lot in his career, so it's interesting to see these relatively humble origins. This is a much smaller movie than he'd do later, but it never feels small. The road trip, the relationship dynamics- it all makes the film feel big while it never loses its intimate focus on the characters. Y Tu Mama Tambien is a movie unlike what Hollywood usually produces and that's a big reason why it's so successful.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Great Expectations