Drama/Mex (2006)

To me, this movie is perfection.

So much average

Pretty Good

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

I saw some reviewer berate this movie at length and thus created this account so I can write in and say NO WAY.... This is definitely among the BEST Mexican movies I've seen for a while. There's definitely a class effect, as it seems to depict the "good life" as being a wealthy one as well, but damn. It took the heartaches of youth and developed them in three dimensions. And the craziness, stupidity. This film will bring you back -- Fantastic. Emotional. Proof that buried into the masculine psyche there is a deep emotion. A yearning hopelessly intertwined with erotic love, and all the agony that goes with it. Definitely among the ones that proudly stand out among the Mexican films to come out in the past few years. I recommend it!

Gerardo Naranjo's sophomore feature, "Drama/Mex", is as unhinged as its protagonists. Essentially, the film plays out as an Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu hybrid, dubiously trying to forcefully connect three stories uncoiling in Acapulco. The first is of Fernanda (Diana Garcia) who runs into Chano (Emilio Valdes), her ex boyfriend at a café; the next thing you know, they're already in bed. In this case, the drama here is that, as familiar as it may seem, she already has a boyfriend named Gonzalo (Juan Pablo Castaneda). At the same time, another tedious narrative thread follows Mariana, who, after just being hired by fellow prostitutes, spots Jaime (Fernando Becerril)—a pretty damn old man who has such meaningless life that he essentially goes to the city to kill himself—and gets him to feed her, entertain her, and shelter her. Despite its grand, promising opening sequence filled with ambition and audacity, the main problem with "Drama/Mex", of course, is its callously exasperating narrative; jaundiced to its very core, it ends up going all over the place, as we now find Gonzalo attacking Chano, Jaime at the club, Fernanda running all over the place, and Mariana buying anything she can. Essentially, what starts out as a finely nuanced, audaciously handsome drama evolves into a frustrating imbroglio, as its familiar ending fails to unite its narrative threads, finally culminating happily yet with a profound feel—and, as odd as it may seem, such disaster can be pliantly interpreted; even appealingly. Indeed, "Drama/Mex" is not entirely with out its merit: Naranjo's mesmerizing camera work fits its milieu perfectly, and the fact that he first studies his characters before sending them to ruin is proof of its boundless self-confidence—all of which are perpetuated by the miraculous cast that, indeed, beautifully portray their dubious situations.

The best Mexican FILM for the last 8 years. A lesson to Reygadas and other ART filmmakers, it shows that you can go to Cannes as a consequence of your talent, not to your skills as a provocation seller.A lesson to commercial directors and producers, I dare them to touch and entertain the audience like this film does.Mexican cinema needs to encourage this kind of artists, we have to stop spending millions of dollars making trash, Lets do 10 of this beautiful human experiences instead of one big meaningless bullshit.Naranjo and guys like Iván Avila, Julian Hernandez, Fernando Eimbcke and other newcomers deserve to shoot something every yearThanks for the effort...Looking forward the next films of Naranjo.

Interesting. I saw it last week in Tokio. It's very clear why the french like it. Despite the director's false modesty during the Q&A; (Repeating endlessly how much he suffers while shooting) the film left me with the sense of having seeing a great work of art.The use of music is a great nod-homage? to Godard. The acting is definitely Cassavetian. The directing of actors is unbelievable great. Still too chaotic for my taste. (The director kept saying that chaos was his only goal) Not for everybody. Machist, misogynistic, excessive use of foul language. Some characters behave like animals. I really dislike the provocation of mixing a rape scene within a romance plot. Why? Overall, I think the film is unique, it's not fashionable although it addresses important subjects. The director is a strange person but knows how to direct actors, after I watched the film I found myself thinking about the film for many days. The subject is the impossibility of being in love, I have followed many new Mexican films of what is called the Mexican new wave, this one is different, the characters morality is without a doubt a provocation. Loud and chaotic the film qualifies as interesting contemporary cinema.