Spanglish | | Cast : | Adam Sandler, Téa Leoni, Paz Vega, Cloris Leachman | | Director : | James L. Brooks | | Studio : | Columbia Tristar Hom | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby | | Released Date : | December 17, 2004 | | DVD Released Date : | April 05, 2005 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), French (Dubbed), French (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | August 05, 2005 | | Summary | Has big hams for hands... | Content
 | A more hamfisted and subtly misogynistic treatment of race/class relations in modern US one could not hope to find. Very silly, very unnecessary.
Interested in hispanic immigration to US? Watch Maria Full of Grace, or the documentary Farmingville, and go from there. Don't touch this with a barge pole. |
| Rating | | | Date | July 27, 2005 | | Summary | A film that defies your expectations...muy muy fabuloso! | Content
| I avoided seeing this film in theaters because it just didn't seem very interesting. Even after it has been on dvd for awhile, I hesitated renting it and the biggest reason is because it was victimized by false marketing. My guess is that the studios didn't know how to market it, and because it stars Adam Sandler, they decided to market it as a comedy, which is a huge mistake. I consider this film to be a drama with comedic elements...but if you're looking for the goofy style comedy of past Adam Sandler films, you're in for a huge disappointment.
It's a shame, really, because this film doesn't fit any neat category. It must be viewed with an open mind (and an open heart wouldn't hurt either). There are some unbelievable stretches that don't work...such as the marriage between Adam Sandler and Tea Leoni. Throughout the whole film, I wondered why they were even a couple. They had little in common and clashed about everything, particularly the role of parental responsibility. If I hadn't seen "The Family Man" where I actually loved Tea Leoni's performance in that film, I would not have been impressed with her here. She plays a very annoying, obsessive and eccentric mother/housewife, who acts without thinking. She's impulsive, intense, and downright irritating. Self-absorbed/self-obsessed to pay any attention to her daughter or husband. I simply couldn't figure her out and her eccentric behavior only made me empathize with Adam Sandler even more.
Adam Sandler does seem out of place in a film like this. As often is the case, he plays the likeable hero whom audiences love. This film is a bit of a stretch, as he plays a father, husband, and award-winning chef. The last part really strained credibility with me. Together, as a couple, Sandler and Leoni are affluent Los Angeles suburbanites who can afford a fulltime housekeeper, played wonderfully by Paz Vega. This film belongs to Paz Vega, as the POV is from her daughter and the focus sits square on her shoulders. She is an amazing find and the reason why I rate this film so high. She has an uncanny resemblance to actress Penelope Cruz and if any Hollywood moguls are reading this review, those two should play sisters in some film one day!!!
The clash of cultures begin when the housekeeper Flor (Paz Vega) begins to work, as she doesn't speak English and the family doesn't speak Spanish. They get by with all manner of comedic misunderstandings, until Flor decides to learn English. What surprises me with this film is that it moves in a certain direction that makes you think where it will end up, yet turns in a surprising way that is actually profound. Ultimately, this film is about boundaries. The American family are too inconsiderate of their housekeeper as they try to "Americanize" her daughter in a way the mother doesn't approve, so she has to decide how best to maintain the sense of boundary and self-respect. The other surprise of this film is Cloris Leachmann, who is a wonderful actress in her own right and she gives the best advice any mother could give a daughter (she plays the alcoholic mother of Tea Leoni's character). I would have loved to see a larger role for her in this film, but she is a joy to watch in every scene she's in.
The reason why I give it a perfect score of 5 stars is because of actresses Paz Vega, Cloris Leachman, and the two girls who play the daughters; along with the surprising turns this film makes; and the overall message one receives at the end of the movie. Quite profound on the clash of cultures, the nature of families, and how best to handle temptations. It is a remarkable film that should have been better advertised to find the right audience. People expecting a typical Adam Sandler comedy will naturally be disappointed, but people expecting a drama with some humor will most likely surprised, in a good way. |
| Rating | | | Date | July 26, 2005 | | Summary | What is this movie about? | Content
| Aside from the misleading trailers that pitched this film as a comedy, this movie never finds its voice. Is it a wise and knowing comedy? A drama about culture clashes and the crazy things Anglos get hung up over? I'm not sure. The characters give us no clue. Adam Sandler looks lost as the perfect dad/celebrity chef. His motives are never really clear. I think Tea Leoni is a great actress but her performance here is one note and manic. The maid character Flor is so perfect and wise it feels like a stereotype. There is wackiness here and there is drama but the characters are drawn so broadly and the plot is so meandering that it's hard to care. |
| Rating | | | Date | July 21, 2005 | | Summary | Rent Before You Buy! | Content
|
This film was better than I thought it would be. I enjoyed it, but it was long and could have been trimmed down. As usual, Adam Sandler's acting left much to be desired, and as usual, he mumbled a bit in at least one of the scenes. The maid, Flor Moreno, turned out to be the most memorable character, which was this movie's only saving grace. The end left much to be desired. My suggestion: rent it before you buy it. |
| Rating | | | Date | July 18, 2005 | | Summary | Okay | Content
| It was good in the begining but got VERY boring in the end. The whole movie was slow pacing without much excitement. I even fell asleep close to the end! |
|
