'MOON' SHINES AS MOVING TALE OF YOUNG BOY'S SOLO JOURNEY.Byline: Bob Strauss Film Critic That old foreign-film staple, the poor but plucky pluck·y adj. pluck·i·er, pluck·i·est Having or showing courage and spirit in trying circumstances. See Synonyms at brave. pluck little kid story, gets mixed with illegal immigrant movie tropes in "Under the Same Moon." You've seen this movie countless times, whether completely in another language ("Central Station") or in Spanglish (well, "Spanglish"). But it's done pretty well here, sacrificing mom, reluctant protector and all. Terrific acting from a mostly Mexican cast (with a note-perfect cameo from America Ferrera as a U.S. college student gone coyote coyote (kī`ōt, kīō`tē) or prairie wolf, small, swift wolf, Canis latrans, native to W North America. It is found in deserts, prairies, open woodlands, and brush country; it is also called brush wolf. for tuition money), plus seasoned TV writer Ligiah Villalobos' determination to pad her predictable screenplay with peculiar bits of business and behavior, keep this thing from getting mired mire n. 1. An area of wet, soggy, muddy ground; a bog. 2. Deep slimy soil or mud. 3. A disadvantageous or difficult condition or situation: the mire of poverty. v. in its own bathos ba·thos n. 1. a. An abrupt, unintended transition in style from the exalted to the commonplace, producing a ludicrous effect. b. An anticlimax. 2. a. . That said, it's still the kind of movie that's adored at film festivals by people who like to think they're too sophisticated to be easily manipulated but enjoy it when they are. Telenovela A telenovela is a limited-run television serial melodrama of the type made famous in Latin America. The word is a portmanteau of tele, short for television, and novela ("novel/soap opera"). Telenovelas are essentially soap operas in miniseries format. queen Kate del Castillo This article or section needs sources or references that appear in reliable, third-party publications. Alone, primary sources and sources affiliated with the subject of this article are not sufficient for an accurate encyclopedia article. plays Rosario, who's been living on the low-down in East L.A. and doing maid work on the Westside for four years, all to send money home to her beloved 9-year-old Carlitos ("Legend of Zorro's" Adrian Alonso). She calls Mexico every Sunday from a corner phone booth, and Carlitos, who lives with his coughing grandmother, complains about how much he misses her. If you hadn't guessed, Abuelita is not long for this world, and when she fails to wake up one morning, little Carlitos buys a ride across the border. Where, of course, everything that can go wrong does. Crucial cash falls unnoticed out of a backpack, hinky Hinky is law enforcement jargon used by U.S. police officers to denote a situation in which circumstances, people, activities, or objects justify investigation, but the specific reason for the action is not yet clear. gringos terrorize ter·ror·ize tr.v. ter·ror·ized, ter·ror·iz·ing, ter·ror·iz·es 1. To fill or overpower with terror; terrify. 2. To coerce by intimidation or fear. See Synonyms at frighten. the kid, Migra agents seem to be everywhere. But there are always good souls willing to help Carlitos on his way from Texas to L.A., and one who isn't so nice -- Enrique, a lone drifter played with solid, selfish indifference by Mexican comedy sensation Eugenio Derbez -- ends up being the boy's most dedicated champion. Yeah, we were really surprised by that development. Meanwhile, Rosario copes with the usual array of desperate housewife employers and decent guys she's too distracted about her son to realize could give her the decent, legal life she longs for. The two stories build toward a nail-biting crescendo of missed connections ... if you actually believe this thing could have an unhappy ending, that is. Director Patricia Riggen loves her characters to death, and she wants all of us to bask in their wonderfulness, too. Despite that, Carlitos, Rosario, Enrique and most of the others come off as real folks more often than not. Los Tigres del Norte Los Tigres del Norte is one of the most popular norteño bands, from Rosa Morada, Sinaloa, Mexico. The group was started by Jorge Hernández, his brothers, and a cousin, and began recording after moving to San Jose, California in the late 1960s, when all the members were still in make a humorous cameo as, essentially, themselves, and our own El Cucuy can be heard on background radio dissing Gov. Schwarzenegger. Bob Strauss (818) 713-3670 bob.strauss(at)dailynews.com UNDER THE SAME MOON - Three stars >PG-13: children in peril, language. >Starring: Adrian Alonso, Kate del Castillo, Eugenio Derbez, America Ferrera. >Director: Patricia Riggen. >Running time: 1 hr. 49 min. >Playing: Area wide. >In a nutshell: Cliched but well-staged story of a little Mexican boy crossing the border on his own to try to find his mother in L.A. In English and Spanish with English subtitles. |
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