Review of The Crime of Padre Amaro (2002) by Maria Z — 23 Oct 2008

This was a solid effort for the Mexican movie industry. The blatant critiques of the Catholic church which poked fun at the bishop and the mass hypocrisy that flow through almost every vein of the institution not surprisingly caused quite a stir in the Catholic church (who, in fact, tried to ban and subsequently boycott the film--actions which ultimately backfired and made it the highest grossing movie in Mexican history, oops).

While the acting, direction, cinematography and score of this film were all relatively strong, it was clear to me that the main focus (and perhaps what many consider the strong point of this project) was the script. I personally found the script rather over-dramatized and predictable, especially during the second half of the film. Gael Bernal delivered a great performance as Father Amaro, however I think the script really made him seem out of character during certain segments of the second half... almost schizophrenically so.

Another distraction for me was the fact that I never identified with the protagonist, Father Amoro. The guy was a real scumbag, he was a corrupt hypocrite from the start of the film, he was just needed the right setting to help these traits emerge.

Overall, the movie left me with a sour taste in my mouth. Although I was initially intrigued and wanted to follow along with the film, by the second half I was starting to lose interest and become bored.