The Greatest Films #3:Y tu mamá también

I’ve decided to start putting together a list of the greatest movies that everyone should see. I love doing top ten lists and everything, but I really would love to discuss classics for a few paragraphs. Also, I hate it when articles get long winded so I’ve adopted a 3 paragraph system that will make the articles super easy and fun to read.

Background:

Alfonso Cuaron made a name for himself in the general populace as the director of the third Harry Potter film, as well as directing the great film Children of Men. His legacy as one of the pillars of the Mexican New Wave might be what makes him endure most, however, his film Y Tu Mama Tambien is the film I go back to time and time again as my favorite of all time.

I’ve tired of discussing why I shouldn’t like it because of the kiss at the end, but have, instead, become reserved to the fact that American machismo is something I cannot combat. I’ve also tired of discussing my obsession with it and often cite the fact that Gene Siskel saw Saturday Night Fever over a dozen times and even bought Travolta’s suit at substational cost. Some films just come along at the utmost perfect time and effect people deeply with no reasonable explanation of why.

My brother’s film is Natural Born Killers, where the reasons might be more obvious. However, I think as he’s grown older those reasons have changed. As I always say: “Movies don’t change, we do.”

What it is about:

The film’s simple story should not be mistaken for shallowness. In fact, it is most certainly the opposite. If America has anything cinematically our own, it is the road trip genre. However, taken in the context of a Mexican film we’re allowed a look at a spin on the genre. The film follows Tenoch and Julio as they travel to a beach with a women they met at party. Inside this simplistic plot lies numerous levels of thematic elements.

Why it is a great film:

The sex in the film is, famously, explicit. But, sex is rarely about love and most often about physical desire. Tambien attempts to strip the act of its cinematic nonsense and view it as most people have it: focused, quiet, emotionless, and clumsy.

Because this movie is “in foreign” you’ll to find a store that carries it, buy it online, or grab it not Netflix.

-Collin