Telenovelas Developers Unite! 6545
De BISAWiki
Casa de Mi Padre is the most tedious film of its kind since MacGruber - a strained effort that has little to go on apart from its one-joke premise, namely a Spanish-language American production that parodies Mexican telenovelas. When it had finally gone through all of its eighty-four minutes (which, by all accounts, is a very short running time), I had the unshakable feeling that the exact same story could have been told as a five-minute Saturday Night Live skit, one that might not have been funnier but at least would not have its visual and verbal gags stretched beyond the breaking point. Watching this movie plod through its tiresome, repetitive, and occasionally self-referential scenes is a little like trying to drive cross-country on only a quarter tank of gas.
It could be that I'm not the right person to review this movie. As someone who hasn't seen a single telenovela, from Mexico or any other Latin American country, I probably failed to notice the ways in which their plot devices were satirized in Casa de Mi Padre. Having said that, I did catch onto several non-cultural, non-genre specific cinematic spoofs, including intentional continuity errors, grainy film stock, fluctuating colors, a copyright date of 1970, and a shot that obviously utilizes toy cars and model streets. We also have a phony-looking puppet of a white tiger (manufactured by The Jim Henson Workshop, no less), who will eventually guide the lead character on a psychedelic spiritual quest. And then there's the moment when the film pauses, at which point the assistant director narrates his own written statement in Spanish. He asked the audience not to tell anyone about it, but what can I say? I'm a blabbermouth.
Taking place in Mexico, it tells the story of Armando Alvarez (Will Ferrell), who has lived and worked his entire life on a ranch owned by his father (the late Pedro Armendariz, Jr.). Despite Armando's loyalty and strong work ethic, Senor Alvarez favors his younger son, Raul (Diego Luna), who returns home with his fiancée, Sonia (Genesis Rodriquez). Unbeknownst to his father, Raul has become successful smuggling drugs to Americans. Unbeknownst to Raul, Armando is falling for Sonia. This comes after Armando gives a dramatic speech about his ideal woman, who he has not yet been able to find up until now. It will soon be up to Armando to save his father's ranch from falling into the hands of a ruthless drug lord named Onza (Gael Garcia Bernal).
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