Review of Casa de Mi Padre (2012) by Eric T — 03 Apr 2012

It's a spoof on Mexican telenovelas and westerns that places a _high_ value on absolute silliness. Honestly, I expected more from one of the more brilliant actors on earth, Gael Garcia Bernal, as the cartel leader "La Onza", but not much was required from him in a fairly one-dimensional satirical role.

Money could've been saved hiring, well, anyone. The same can be said for most characters in the cast, thus what could have been a more inspired gag on tired old genres becomes a bit of a tired old film.

Except! Will Ferrell, an actor whose movies I generally do not take kindly to, is hilarious and convincing as Armando Alvarez, the kid brother of cartel up-and-comer Raul (Diego Luna, blah). His charisma as the family idiot-turned-savior is able to bring together the other minor roles, and add color and contour to a film strapped for a voice.

Basically, everyone in the movie is made more interesting by their interactions with Ferrell's Armando, especially La Onza who is far funnier and more pathetic in the face of this strange and earnest man.

Ferrell kept the movie moving for me, and I kept wanting to watch just to see what kind of antics he'd get involved in next (though an extended scene of butt-grabbing between he and Genesis Rodriguez's Sonia I did not see coming -- you speak of bittersweet.

..) As someone who has seen a few telenovelas as well as the impact they seem to have on Mexican culture, especially for moms and teens, I was hoping for a better spoof. Honestly, they pratically parody themselves! But Ferrell, with his oddly fluent Spanish and idiot seriousness, going toe-to-toe with his brother and La Onza, provided enough laughs to stamp the movie "enjoyable" if not fully satisfying.

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