There's Doings About!

DRAMA/MEX GERARDO NARANJO 2006

There, see. I don't even remember las dramaticas so well and it's a scant hour after the fact. Such is the case with the sultry stick of cinematic sweet, in one eye and out the other, or so the proverb goes. Or maybe it's the humidity. Or probably the PBR. Theaters have A/C and I want nothing tonight but a slap on the back of the head and a prod in the right direction.

Naranjo answers the call with this silly nod to French New Wave, adolescence and a vague sense of menace. Sailing along on the wings of a few very iconic scenes and some incredibly sympathetic (nay, downright cute) leads, the unfortunately titled Drama/Mex seduced me with naught but a side-long glance from Ms. Diana Garcia--she of very potential AmerAppar ad-porn fame. That and a modestly chubs teen with designs upon a suicidal ex-father who share a Lolita relationship of Lost in Translation proportions minus the obvious gag factor.

To sum, it's a narrative mix along the supposedly (insanely mis-reviewed) lines of Amores Perros but it stinks like my 8th grade vid project, which basically translates to a possibly unearned but commendable feeling of authenticity. Story 2 involves the aforementioned Ms. Garcia intermittently fucking some Ryan Phillipe-wannabe prick while ditching crowd-favorite, Gonzalo, with the final analysis approving of the hometown fave.

Plot issues aside, it's take your pick of very fine video cinematography making the most of a few hot Mexicans or an indulgent romp in the post-Y Tu terrain. Or is that the same territory? Or have I cum too far?
Either way, my buttons were pushed and we've here got the sandy sitcom-cum-Myspace love story of the year--or stories as the case may have. A perfect night out and a damn decent flick, though by no means excellent, this is a day-in-the-life without the social comment that a few prick reviewers seem to demand so violently.

Charges of nihilism and emptiness were raised RottenTomatoes-wise, but your's truly answers to a higher calling: immediate gratification. In that arena, Naranjo answers muy graciously. In substantive terms, I was left wanting as the tale spins from possible Battle in Heaven-level psycho-drama of the higher order to a neat 'n' tidy beach bash of earthly delights. But that's the point, so find your own waterfront softcore. Or in other words, the girls are hot, the lasting impression's not.

Kudos to a handful of great shots, some sex, and an old man crying over the barrel of a revolver. If that's not a way to kill a hot summer night, then maybe I need a vacation.


WHAT AM I LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
Well, Nancy & Lee downstairs, Magnetism of War by Bone Awl up here!