I knew it. Invariably when I have seen a film with especially sordid unappealing characters, a lot of crude sex scenes, and a morally incoherent worldview, I know that the film will receive rave reviews from the sort of pseudo-intellectuals who think the presence of drugs and sex in a movie, along with a lack of dramatically satisfying resolution is somehow proof of a film's high merit. And I can see from many of the reviews here that I am sadly right.
Y Tu Mama Tambien is a fairly schizoid film in that on the surface the story is of two spoiled brats whiling away summer break and their coastal trip with a sad young wife who is leaving her husband, but there is a constant subtext of commentary, some of it voice-over, some woven subtly into the story about contemporary Mexico, the disillusionment of young people with their world as well as general angst of the people with their nation.
Unfortunately, the surface story is not very interesting. A lot of explicit sex scenes starring the two teenagers, Julio & Tenoch, cannot distract one from the fact that their characters, as well as the actors themselves, are, physically unattractive, dislikeable, and one-dimensional. As a result, the sex isn't even very sexy. The young woman, Luisa, is the only character in the film, other than some of the kindly villagers met during their trip, for whom I felt the slightest sympathy, and even she struck me as somewhat unbelievable. She alone seems to have something of a conscience, or to show concern for anyone other than herself. Julio and Tenoch evince no affection for their family members, no interest in anything outside of sex, nicotine and drugs, view women as receptacles, have no obligations of any sort---where are their parents? So, although Julio unlike Tenoch is not from a wealthy family, he seems to be remarkably free from responsibilities. Spending time watching them was painful, and I kept thinking, okay, surely there is something more to this film.
On the other level, the one which seems to reach for some sort of political/economic/philosophical commentary, the movie didn't really work. The voice-overs imply that we can expect something deeper, some really pithy observations, but the story doesn't really deliver anything. The narrations serve to put distance between us and the drama. I couldn't see the point in observing what would happen in a traffic accident on the road in the past or the future, for example, yet it takes up time in the film. Once it became clear that these interruptions would not develop further, the film seemed increasingly amateurish.
At the end I felt somewhat depressed at the narcissism and vacuousness of the lead characters and felt I'd been drinking from a septic tank.
Y Tu Mama Tambien is a fairly schizoid film in that on the surface the story is of two spoiled brats whiling away summer break and their coastal trip with a sad young wife who is leaving her husband, but there is a constant subtext of commentary, some of it voice-over, some woven subtly into the story about contemporary Mexico, the disillusionment of young people with their world as well as general angst of the people with their nation.
Unfortunately, the surface story is not very interesting. A lot of explicit sex scenes starring the two teenagers, Julio & Tenoch, cannot distract one from the fact that their characters, as well as the actors themselves, are, physically unattractive, dislikeable, and one-dimensional. As a result, the sex isn't even very sexy. The young woman, Luisa, is the only character in the film, other than some of the kindly villagers met during their trip, for whom I felt the slightest sympathy, and even she struck me as somewhat unbelievable. She alone seems to have something of a conscience, or to show concern for anyone other than herself. Julio and Tenoch evince no affection for their family members, no interest in anything outside of sex, nicotine and drugs, view women as receptacles, have no obligations of any sort---where are their parents? So, although Julio unlike Tenoch is not from a wealthy family, he seems to be remarkably free from responsibilities. Spending time watching them was painful, and I kept thinking, okay, surely there is something more to this film.
On the other level, the one which seems to reach for some sort of political/economic/philosophical commentary, the movie didn't really work. The voice-overs imply that we can expect something deeper, some really pithy observations, but the story doesn't really deliver anything. The narrations serve to put distance between us and the drama. I couldn't see the point in observing what would happen in a traffic accident on the road in the past or the future, for example, yet it takes up time in the film. Once it became clear that these interruptions would not develop further, the film seemed increasingly amateurish.
At the end I felt somewhat depressed at the narcissism and vacuousness of the lead characters and felt I'd been drinking from a septic tank.