Spanglish (2004)

hyped garbage

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

I was surprised about how much I liked this movie. I didn't want to watch it initially, but I'm glad I did. The acting was excellent (even by Adam Sandler) and it presented a variety of conflicting emotions. I'm impressed.

This movie starts out fresh with all sorts of charm and clever writing... but turns into something else altogether after mid-point. The dreary situation of Sandler's marriage and attraction to Vega causes him to mostly... sit there and mumble. The drinking scene in the restaurant is just slow and thinly written. The interactions of the two families involved is fun and touching... and that part alone is good enough for me to rate it well. After awhile, though, the writer just seemed to run low on plot. I've seen this happen in a lot of comedies... writers seem to always want to make material DEEP or be sure they've punched the 'cry' button. If it stayed light and was shorter... it would have been tighter and more entertaining all around.

........................................................from Pasto,Colombia...Via: L.A. CA., CALI, COLOMBIA...and ORLANDO, FL Here, Spanglish is not a mixture of the two languages, but instead, more of an encounter, and yes, at times, a clash between two cultures: That of "Gringos" and of Latinos! More than anything else, Spanglish speaks to all Hispanics of just how hard living in the United States can be, at times. To assimilate into its culture without losing ones Latin roots. The film manages to do so in a most convincing and believable way, highlighting some of the positive values of Latino culture, but, at the same time, respecting the dignity of all the characters in the film, while avoiding most, but not all, of the ridiculous stereotypes that abound in Hollywood! There is most certainly something in Spanglish for every member of your family! (There is one brief scene of a loving marriage encounter, but not graphic in the least.) The cast is fabulous. Spaniard Paz Vega appears quite natural and convincing as Mexican Flor Moreno. Adam Sandler shows definite versatility as both a dramatic and comedic actor. Tea Leoni, here almost outshines everyone in her role of a rather endearing but neurotic American housewife. And the young, Shelbie Bruce, playing the role of Flor's daughter, Cristina, waxes totally bilingual/bi-cultural.However, do not let your previewing expectations get too high! Regardless of being a must see film for all Hispanics who live, have lived or who have had an extended stay in the U.S., Spanglish does have its flaws. Producer/director/writer, James L. Brooks, despite having directed such classics as Broadcast News, As Good As It Gets and Terms of Endearment, seems, at times. to have become too enamored of his own work, resulting In some excesses. The film drags on for over 2 hours. It would have been a more enjoyable film if Brooks had left at least 10 or 15 minutes on the cutting room floor.Spanglish also suffers from moments of poor writing and direction of its principle characters, with too many mugging facial close-ups. These exaggerated expressions often did not seem the least bit natural. Spanglish also Tried to convince us that someone can go from a beginner in English to someone with tremendous proficiency in a breezy 2 or 3 months! Even taking a 50 hour per week immersion course, that's a pretty tall order! If it were that easy, everyone would speak five languages, right? (As the owner/director of language institutes for 40 years, believe me, I'm an EXPERT!) Despite its flaws, Spanglish is guaranteed to have a decidedly positive impact! 7.5*......ENJOY/DISFRUTELA! Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en Español, are most welcome!

A woman (Paz Vega) and her daughter emigrate from Mexico for a better life in America, where they start working for a family where the patriarch (Adam Sandler) is a newly celebrated chef with an insecure wife (Tea Leoni).The biggest problem with this movie: Tea Leoni is a truly awful actress. But even besides that, as many have pointed out, the word for this film is "uneven". There is not a clear plot arc, it wavers from comedy to drama to something else. There was probably a good movie in here, but it gets lost somehow.Adam Sandler takes the lead to some extent, but his acting is just alright. After "Punch Drunk Love", we know he can do drama just as well as comedy. But here, he seems like he is always ready to crack a joke and not really fully committed to his serious, fatherly role.