A comedy with a language all its own.
The latest film by James L. Brooks, "Spanglish"
is a film that made me laugh, made me cry and
made me leave the theater examining my own
values, thoughts, ideas and loyalties around
family, friendship and dreams.
The film stars Paz Vega as a young woman (Flor)
who enters the United States illegally with her
young daughter, lives a peaceful existence in a
largely Hispanic area of Los Angeles until six
years later when she becomes the housekeeper for
the Clasky's (played by Tea Leoni and Adam
Sandler) and their daughter (played by Sarah
Steele) and their son (played by Ian Hyland).
"Spanglish" offers a narrative form of
presentation that largely works...it is narrated
by a 17-year-old Cristina, Flor's daughter. The
narration is not intrusive and works because it
is presented as a college admissions
representative reading an applicant's admissions
essay...it's a simple approach, but adds
remarkably to the the film.
"Spanglish" is, in many ways, a typical Brooks
film. It is filled with heartwarming, inspiring
yet utterly frustrating characters with the best
of intentions and the deepest of flaws.
Paz Vega is utterly brilliant as Flor, a
stunning and beautiful young woman who was
abandoned (fool!) by her husband in Mexico and
yet completely lives for her daughter. Brooks
does a wonderful job of incorporating Hispanic
culture into this film, including the use of the
Spanish language, without ever losing the
audience. Vega's "Flor" is completely loyal to
her daughter even when dealing with her own
pride, her own hurt and her own fears. The
scenes of Flor dealing with not knowing the
English language are funny yet quite insightful.
I find myself disheartened that Vega did not
receive a Golden Globe nomination...this is a
worthy performance.
As the Clasky's, Tea Leoni and Adam Sandler are
a remarkable contrast and yet offer similarly
wonderful performance. Leoni gets the greatest
chance to shine as her character runs the gamut
of emotions from the deepest of despair to the
heights of frivolity. In many ways, Leoni offers
the "spark" I never really found in Helen Hunt's
"As Good as it Gets" performance.
Sandler, on the other hand, appears to offer a
fairly dry performance and yet that is its
brilliance. This may be Sandler's first truly
"real" film role and he pulls it off. Even in
"Punch-Drunk Love," Sandler could be
over-the-top and exhibit some of his usual
traits. He does none of that here. He's simply a
frustrated, at times clueless, father and
husband. Sandler's character is a brilliant,
compassionate man but never really sees it.
As the Clasky's daughter, Sarah Steele offers
one of the best teen performances of the year.
This is, perhaps, due to the fact that she
reminded me of a teenager that I actually know.
Steele, with this as her first film, offers a
heartbreaking performance as a young teen who so
desperately wants parental approval and yet
remains loyal to them as she is rejected time
and again.
Finally, and not even yet mentioned here, is a
performance that completely blew me away. Cloris
Leachman, who hasn't really "acted" in years
offers a tour-de-force supporting performance as
Tea Leoni's mother, a formerly successful
performer largely living on the glory of her
past and the failures of her parenting. The last
30 minutes of the film are powerful reminders of
the brilliance of Leachman. Once again, this
should have been a "Best Supporting Actress"
nomination from the Golden Globes.
"Spanglish" did receive a Golden Globe
nomination for its Hans Zimmer score, which is
the perfect accompaniment to the film.
I vacillated between an A- and a B+ for this
film. Indeed, I was not completely happy with
the script by James L. Brooks. The film
occasionally takes the easy way out or is
willing to fall into stereotypical
responses...yet, every time this happens it
seems to bounce back into a brilliant choice.
For example, with such a beautiful woman and an
utterly frustrated, insecure and lonely husband,
the inevitablility of an affair seemed obvious.
Clearly, Brooks allowed an "attraction" to
develop...yet Brooks, in his wisdom, chose a
different path (which I won't reveal). He
approaches the idea, flirts heavily with the
idea then makes the choice that left me going
"Wow!."
I also found myself somewhat dissatisfied with
the lack of resolution between mother and
daughter...Leoni's character rejects her
daughter throughout the film, and often turns
her affection towards Vega's daughter (a
beautiful young Hispanic girl)...while we can
see the hurt of Leoni's daughter, this issue is
never really explored. This added yet another
level of hurt for Steele's character AND the
hurt showed on her face...but, I wanted this
hurt explored even more.
Finally, I found myself a bit unimpressed with
the ending even though it was a dignified
ending. Vega did, actually, make the "right"
choice and the consistent choice regarding her
daughter. Yet, I had grown to care significantly
about these characters and I wanted to know more
about their resolution. I also can't deny,
however, that I've thought about the film much
more since I left the theater because I find
myself constantly wondering how they ended up.
On fun notes, even in a non-Sandler film Sandler
manages to squeeze in an Allen Covert
performance. I still find it remarkable that
Covert doesn't act more...he's offered
remarkably diverse and fun performances in
Sandler films and is worthy of greater screen
time. Additionally, the rented Malibu beach home
that serves as the primary setting throughout
much of the filming apparently had quite a bit
of damage by the end of filming...the owner has
currently sued filmmakers for $76,000 plus lost
income over the damages.
"Spanglish" is, however, a character driven film
and I truly found myself enchanted and caring
about each of these characters. So, I find
myself willing to forgive these script flaws and
reward the film with an "A" range rating. While
not a perfect film, and certainly not the best
of Brooks, "Spanglish" is a wonderful film,
highly entertaining and offers captivating
performances by Vega, Leoni, Leachman, Sandler
and Steele.
If you love the films of James L. Brooks, you
will love "Spanglish." It is a smart, sensitive
and entertaining comedy that deserves to be seen
this holiday season with its messages of hope
and family.
©
Written by Richard Propes
TC Candler's Comment
I had a great
time with this charming family drama. And
every time I see Paz Vega on screen, I fall in
love all over again. This is an immensely
likeable film.
Jacob
Hall's Comment
N/A
