Warning: Spoilers ahead. If you plan to see this
film, read my review for it after viewing the
movie. You have been warned.
“That’s a size six.
You’ll never fit into that, fatty.”
These are the
rather harsh words exchanged between a mother
and daughter in Real Women Have Curves.
This is a feel-good film, which brilliantly
showcases young-talent and multi-dimensional
writing. Genuinely beautiful and pleasingly
entertaining, many members of the audience will
undoubtedly walk out of the theatre, touched.
Real Women Have Curves advertises itself as
the next My Big Fat Greek Wedding. This
is only to get people’s attention. The two films
couldn’t be any different. The first throws
light-hearted humor at the audience. This film
deals with the many self-image issues that
confront tons of teenage girls these days.
Real Women Have Curves should be viewed by
younger members of society; it will undeniably
better their character. It is the most
motivational and tasteful film I’ve come across
in quite some time.
Ana (America
Ferrera) is an intelligent, young
Mexican-American girl. She would like to succeed
in life, and become someone meaningful. Eighteen
years of age, Ana hopes to go to a four year
college, but a problem lies in her way. Even
though she is as American as any of the other
girls at her school, Ana’s family continues to
follow Mexican traditions, outside of their
native country. Ana will not move away from home
until she marries, and she will work for the
family business until she finds this husband, to
keep tradition. It will be very hard to convince
her family to allow her to go to college.
Helping her in doing so is her high school
English teacher, Mr. Guzman (George Lopez). Mr.
Guzman knows how bright Ana is, and he
continually tries to show her parents how much
she would benefit from higher education. When
they say they don’t have the money, he tells
them that he will get her full a scholarship.
Ana and Mr. Guzman are determined to do this.
For the time
being, however, Ana will have to work with her
mother and sister in the family dressmaking
sweatshop. They make loads of dresses, and sell
them to a retailer, who then puts them on store
shelves for at least twenty times what they
bought them for. This is where the film deals
with self-image issues. In addition to her
intelligence, Ana is also a little pudgy. She is
very pretty, but overweight. Her mother is
constantly making fun of her for this. She
claims that Ana would’ve already had a
boyfriend, and been ready to marry him, if she
had been skinnier. Making countless dresses in
size zero and size two for thin women is a
constant reminder of this, for Ana. But she
doesn’t want to change her image. She is happy
with who she is, even though she isn’t perfect.
No one is perfect. Ana knows that her mother is
sending her the wrong message. She is finally
able to find a boy, who judges her for her
inner-beauty. His name is Jimmy (Brian Sites).
For once in her life, she is able to disregard
her mother’s seemingly hateful comments. Ana
knows that Jimmy and she were meant to be, and
that she has finally found someone right.
Jimmy will be
leaving soon to go to college, though. His
departure will be very saddening for Ana. This
is the point where Real Women Have Curves
could’ve gone terribly wrong, but chooses the
right path, instead. Is Ana going to try to
disobey her parents, and get into the exact same
college as Jimmy, in order to live happily ever
after? No, she will accept the change in her
life, and learn to live with it, like any normal
person in any normal situation would. The ending
is actually fairly unpredictable, which is nice
to see, considering that it is a member of a
very predictable genre. Ana’s way of developing
as the story moves is undeniably divine. This is
conceived through the stylish writing, by
Josefina Lopez, that is purely inspiring. The
story leaves incisions in viewer’s
personalities, which mold and craft their
character, and show them the true meaning of
life and how appearances should be valued. This
is a much more emotionally important film than
it is cinematically groundbreaking. The story
loses a bit of its effect when being put onto
film (it was adapted from a play), but still
contains a meaningful impact. It’s clearly one
of the most visionary movies of the year,
putting it into comparison.
The entire film
is carried by leading lady, Ferrera. She is so
wonderfully strong in such a powerful role, it’s
amazing to watch her glow onscreen. In one of
the most dynamic scenes of the film, Ana is
standing naked in front of Jimmy in a dark room.
She tells him to turn on the light so she can
see her for what she is. He can see her real
appearance. He tells her that she is beautiful.
We sense the real love, compassion, and
chemistry between the two, and truly believe
that Ana is one of the most gorgeous people
alive. We see her grace explode into an
earthquake of feeling; so elegant and alive.
This is a strong woman who knows who she is; she
has discovered her true identity. Ana is a
wonderful character, and Ferrera portrays her in
one of the most glamorous of ways. Balancing
humor, sexiness, and dignity, Ferrera is sure to
be one of the strongest performers in the
industry in coming years. There are problems
that lie in her way, though; just like every
other performers. She cannot speak fluent
Spanish, so she can’t act in any Mexican-made
films. And, there aren’t many films about the
Mexican culture, that are primarily done in
English, like this one. But, just as Ana
overcomes obstacles in Real Women Have Curves,
I assume that Ferrera will be able to do the
same with her acting career. Most likely, she
will learn to be as good in pure-bread American
movies, as she was in Real Women Have Curves.
I don’t see any problems with that, and I don’t
know why she should have reason to, either.
Real Women
Have Curves is a wonderful coming-of-age
film that is a delight to watch. It is
thoroughly enjoyable, as well as deeply
meaningful. I guess you could say that it kills
two birds with one stone; it’s a good exercise
in filmmaking, as well as a motivational piece
of excellence. Thanks to a strong performance by
Ferrera and her co-stars, strong writing by
Lopez, and a tremendous natural feel for its
material, Real Women Have Curves succeeds
on many levels. Watching the film, I felt as
though it was a kaleidoscope-like view of real
life. It truly feels as though the actors are
living the lives of their characters, and that
they aren’t just simply acting in front of a
camera. Each performer must be able to strongly
relate to their character. Ferrera, I know,
admits to this. In interviews, she mentions that
the reason why she chose the role was because
she could relate to most all of the aspects of
the film. She says that she and her mother have
similar battles to the one that Ana and her mom
do, about jumbling acting and education. Ferrera
also says that several people have called her
obese, but she’s proud of what she is. Real
Women Have Curves has a firm grasp on this
topic, and never let’s go of what it’s trying to
accomplish. This is what makes it such a
miraculous achievement.
-Danny, Bucket
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