Review of From Prada to Nada (2011) by Renae A — 19 Dec 2011

When hearing the title, "From Prada to Nada", one might instantly cast it out as one of their must-see films. And with good reason. Quite honestly, I distanced myself from this film for months until finally deciding on watching it.

With a brilliant marquee name (at least for me), Oscar nominated Adriana Barraza, I figured why not give it a shot. After losing their father, Nora and Mary Dominguez find out that their father was actually going bankrupt and they would now have to succumb to the reality that they were not rich.

Forced to live with family members who fall within the working class, the girls must find themselves and employment in this coming of age story. Sound familiar? I thought so. As I expected, Ms. Barraza is not the problem with this film.

Neither is casting, for the most part. Surprisingly, Camilla Belle does a wonderful job portraying a smart, sophisticated, but love-lorn, woman on a quest to become a successful lawyer. Alexa Vega is the ever-so, cliche, "material girl" we too often encounter in these types of films who is the complete opposite.

Wilder Valderama is oddly placed in the role of the hard-working neighbor who is bound to be a love interest to one of the main characters. As is Nicholas D'Agosto who plays an uptown, yet humble attorney.

The real shining star was actually the villain, played by an almost unrecognizable Kuno Becker, who delivers a subtle and devious performance. Nothing considered Oscar-worthy, of course. The real problem with this movie is that it leaves little to the imagination.

Noted, it's a cliche, yet updated, yet sadly predictable version of Jane Austen's Sense & Sensibility. A culture clash way of looking at the story, if you will, since it takes place in the heart of East LA with a Latin family.

Performances aside, the screenplay isn't always at its best either, leaving the actors to find ways of delivering the dialogue without sounding forced. One great feature this movie did contain was the location.

From experience, I can say some great shots of East LA were incorporated. All in all, an enjoyable hour and a half which was unnecessary, to say the least.