Y tu mamá también

Alfonso Cuarón's Spanish film Y tu mamá también (2001) is surprisingly captivating. The narration holds enough political underpinning and diverges enough so that the film possesses undercurrents of commentary that prevents it from merely being a film about the sexes. Moreover, the friendships and relationships continuously develop, overlap, and fragment, so that the most minute dialogue truly has the impact of reality, rather than prescripted Screenwriting 101. This film is yet another example of how foreign cinema gets at the heart of the matter with far stronger results than Hollywood scripted stories about relationships. Though the films are different tonally, this bears a resemblance to Mike Nichols Closer in its examination of the politics of the sexes, yet, as stated earlier, it contains political commentary about Mexico that allows the film to transcend any simple label of being a "relationship movie." It is a road trip movie, a political critique of Julio (Gael Garcia Bernal) and Tenoch's (Diego Luna) cultural upbringing, and a film about trying to get some sweet lovin'.

As one can guess from the picture, the film is obviously going to be sexy, with two high school guys trying to score with an older woman, but it is also quite affecting emotionally. To understand the twist that comes at the end for Luisa (Maribel Verdu) and how it's so embroiled in the beginning of her character is a great bait and switch by the director. So it's a wonderfully complex take on sexuality, maturity, and the psychology that is at the heart of all relationships. Beautifully shot and directed, and what a final scene via image and voiceover at the coffee shop. A great commentary on the impermanence of relationships built around simple lies instead of hard truths.

Y tu mamá también: 8/10