Y tu mamá también
Mexico
2001
105 Min
Color
1.85:1
Spanish
Synopsis
This beautifully filmed, expertly acted movie about two 17-year-old, middle-class Mexican boys on summer break is deceivingly complex. The basic plot of the film is that best friends Tenoch (Diego Luna, Before Night Falls) and Julio (Gael Garcia Bernal, Amores Perros), who think of nothing but sex, convince a beautiful 28-year-old woman, Luisa (Maribel Verdu), to go on a road trip with them to a nonexistent beach. They get lost. They flirt and giggle and fawn over Luisa hoping to win her over with their boyish charms. And that’s about it. But that simple plotline merely provides structure for the poetry and meaning that is woven into the film with photography and narration. Periodically throughout the film, while the action continues normally, the sound stops. A voice over then gives information—sometimes a brief biography of one of the characters (birth date, name of father and mother, consequences of birth, primary childhood experiences), or a note about what each of the characters is really thinking, or a news report or historical comment that brings Mexico’s tangled politics into the context of daily life. Never is the voice connected to a character in the film. It simply floats. Meanwhile, underwater photography, roving shots of the Mexican countryside, and affectionate close-ups on the characters communicate a solemnness that is not present in the plot. All of these pieces fit together easily, resulting in an excellent, whole, thoughtful film. –amazon
Director
Alfonso Cuarón
Among the most successful and talked-about Mexican filmmakers of his generation, director Alfonso Cuarón has shown a remarkable versatility, able to embrace old-school Hollywood elegance as well as rough-edged and darker-themed contemporary stories. Cuarón was born in Mexico City in 1961; he went on to study both filmmaking and philosophy at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. After graduating, Cuarón began working in television in Mexico; in 1991, he landed his first big-screen directorial assignment. Sólo Con Tu Pareja was a dark comedy about a womanizing businessman who learns he’s contracted AIDS; the film was a massive hit in Mexico, and was enthusiastically received around the world.
In 1995, Cuarón released his first feature film produced in the United States, A Little Princess, a graceful and elegant adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic novel. Cuarón’s next feature was also a literary adaptation, a modernized version of Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations… read more
Wall
Displaying 4 of 60 wall posts.
T. J. Mesen
17May13
In the spirit of Rohmer, Truffaut and sparks of early Godard, Y tu mamá también manages to speak honestly about Mexico like few had done for decades. Though frequently cited as a self discovery or a road movie, to me its central thesis is to find a new aesthetic that can expose the qualities that together compose contemporary Mexico.
-
T. J. Mesen
17May13
The omniscient narrator and free roaming camera attempt to give everyone (not just the three protagonists) a story– in society everyone matters, and we have been neglecting this. This is the Mexico of the new millenium, full of hope, a new government and a rising economy. It's a rejuvenated Mexico with the potential of beauty, but that was still finding itself, and the main narrative and multiple micro-stories serve as a metaphor for this journey of the new Mexico.
Hayley M Cameron
5Apr13
One of my favourites because it epitomises the passion for freedom and experience. The narration reveals the secret triggers inside the individual. The film resonates with me because of the juxtaposition between naivety and knowing, freedom and the inescapable
Whyte Nite
27Mar13
Incredible film. Nothing compares to that moment when Brian Eno's "By This River" starts playing on the car stereo while the bored camera glances outside the window. Although I felt the car should have got an upgrade.
Related Films
Fans
Displaying 5 of 4077 fans.
Lists
Displaying 5 of 515 lists.
Reviews
Displaying 4 of 4
E Sua Mãe Também, de Alfonso Cuarón
By Leonardo Mascaro on March 30, 2012
Para os desavisados, “E Sua Mãe Também” não passa de mais um road-movie com jovens curtindo a vida sem pensar nem se preocupar com o amanhã. E talvez para mim também seria, se eu o tivesse assistido… read review
Y tu mamá también (2001)
By Paul Drude on January 7, 2011
I don’t think I have enough context to fully appreciate this movie.
My impressions after viewing it were dull.
The film is good. They touch on some good drama. The setting and characters… read review
My face is in your Mum and that is where she likes me...
By Dean Leonidik Ryder on December 30, 2009
These boys are just that at the beginning of the film. They are explicit in all respects: sex, drugs and bodily functions. Seeing how unnecessary many of these behaviours are, is a critical part of… read review
Untitled
By Alonso Díaz de la Vega on November 28, 2008
Not only is this the greatest portrayal of the Mexican upper class and lower class pretending to be richer, but it’s Mexico itself. Throughout the journey, we see typical scenes of Mexico City and… read review
Forum
Displaying
0 discussion topics.