Starring
Eugenio Derbez, Salma Hayek, Raphael Alejandro, Rob Lowe, Kristen
Bell, Raquel Welch, Rob Riggle, Rob Huebel, Renee Taylor, Linda
Lavin, Mckenna Grace. Directed by Ken Marino. (2017, 155 min).
If
nothing else, this film's pre-title prologue made me laugh loud
enough to startle my cat.
In
a year rife with raunchy, unfunny comedies that have mostly bombed at
the box office, the rest of How to be a Latin Lover is a breath of fresh air. Even with a PG-13 rating, I was
expecting something filled with self-humiliating characters, sex gags and snickering innuendo. While the film does indeed have some
of that, it's often genuinely funny without ever becoming
mean-spirited or descending into pure sleaze. And - surprise,
surprise - it even manages to be sentimental and sweet at times.
 |
| "Hey, Mister...you has Friskies?" |
Eugenio
Derbez is Maximo, a man with no work ethic who marries an older rich
woman for her money. 25 years later, she dumps him for a younger man,
leaving him homeless and broke. He moves in with his sister, Sara
(Salma Hayek), a budding architect, and her nerdy, awkward son, Hugo
(Raphael Alejandro). Predictably, his self-absorption, laziness and
inappropriate behavior around Hugo makes him a bane to Sara. Hugo,
who's own father died a few years before, is quite taken with his
uncle, who initially wants nothing to do with the boy.
Meanwhile,
rather than look for a legitimate job, Maximo sets out to snag
another wealthy older woman to take care of him, which he thinks he
finds in Celeste (Rachel Welch, still looking mighty fine for 76).
Coincidently, she's the grandmother of the girl Hugo has a secret
crush on. Maximo decides to give his nephew lessons in winning-over
the ladies (the only sleazy way he knows how) in order to get closer
to Celeste. Unfortunately, Maximo is no longer the virile young stud
he used to be and generally ends up making things worse for
everybody, including himself, not helped by the so-called advice of
friend and fellow man-toy Rick (Rob Lowe).
 |
| "What do you mean you don't like tea parties?" |
The
premise alone naturally lends itself to ample opportunities for
cartoonish antics and low-brow comedy, which the film
more-than-willingly provides. It isn't always laugh-out-loud funny,
but much of it is chuckleworthy and resists the
overwhelming temptation to degenerate into a leering sex farce. In
fact, except for some suggestive dialogue here and there, you might even feel comfortable watching this with your older kids, who'd probably
enjoy the scenes involving Hugo and Maximo. Speaking of which, these
two provide the emotional crux of a film I never expected to have
one. Despite their age difference, they treat and talk to each other
as equals since Hugo is wise beyond his years and Maximo never really
grew up in the first place.
From
a narrative standpoint, there aren't too many surprises, but the
characters are fun due to lively performances by an impressive cast. Despite his
shallow, obnoxious character, Derbez renders Maximo likable, while Alejandro is charming as the socially-awkward Hugo.
The rest of the cast are all given their moments to shine, as well.
Lowe plays yet-another oily sleaze as only he can, while Linda Lavin
is unnervingly hilarious as his sugar mama. Kristen Bell's cat-lady
character is arguably the least essential to the story, though the
increasingly brutal scratch wounds on her face & body is the best
running gag in the movie. Even Welch, never exactly renowned for her
comedic skills, has a few amusing moments.
How
to Be a Latin Lover isn't gonna change the world and perhaps runs
a tad longer than it needs to, but it never quite wears out its welcome.
It's an engaging, affably entertaining film that manages to juggle
slapstick & situational comedy pretty well, while remaining
surprisingly sweet-natured.
EXTRA
KIBBLES
FEATURETTES:
"Show Me Your Sexy!" (making-of); "A Little Help from
My Friends" (mostly about director Ken Marino assembling the
cast)
AUDIO
COMMENTARY - by director Marino, producer Ben Odell & editor John
Daigle
DELETED/EXTENDED
SCENES
DVD
& DIGITAL COPIES
KITTY CONSENSUS:
PURR-R-R...LIKE A GOOD SCRATCH BEHIND THE EARS
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