Like Water for Chocolate (1992)
"Como agua para chocolate" (original title)

This movie is about how life used to be in Mexico. It is a love story between Pedro and Tita, and why they coudn't get married because Tita's mother wanted her oldest daughter to get ... See full summary »

Director:

Alfonso Arau

Writers:

Laura Esquivel (novel), Laura Esquivel (screenplay)

Stars:

Marco Leonardi, Lumi Cavazos, Regina Torné

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 25 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marco Leonardi	...	Pedro Muzquiz
Lumi Cavazos	...	Tita
Regina Torné	...	Mamá Elena
Mario Iván Martínez	...	Doctor John Brown
Ada Carrasco	...	Nacha
Yareli Arizmendi	...	Rosaura
Claudette Maillé	...	Gertrudis
Pilar Aranda	...	Chencha
Farnesio de Bernal	...	Cura
Joaquín Garrido	...	Sargento Treviño
Rodolfo Arias	...	Juan Alejándrez
Margarita Isabel	...	Paquita Lobo
Sandra Arau	...	Esperanza Muzquiz
Andrés García Jr.	...	Alex Brown
Regino Herrera	...	Nicolás

Storyline

This movie is about how life used to be in Mexico. It is a love story between Pedro and Tita, and why they coudn't get married because Tita's mother wanted her oldest daughter to get married first, and have Tita to stay and take care of her. It shows how marriage was imposed on those times, and how a love between two people can change everything. This picture set a new epoch in Mexican movies all over the world.

---

Plot Keywords:

love | mexico | wedding | marriage | wedding cake | 

---

Taglines:

A feast for the senses!

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Mexico

Language:

Spanish English

Release Date:

17 February 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Like Water for Chocolate

Filming Locations:

Ciudad Acuña, Coahuíla, Mexico

Box Office

Gross:

$21,665,500 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Arau Films Internacional, Aviacsa, Cinevista

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min 113 min (R Rated NTSC Version)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

An aspiring filmmaker from Texas, who was not involved with the project, was able to spend time on set, because he was in town shooting a small budget ($5,000) full-length feature film for the Spanish home video market. That young filmmaker was Robert Rodriguez, and the film was El Mariachi, which would go on to become a hit at Sundance and launch his career.

---

Goofs

At Esperanza's wedding to Alex Brown, the groom is shown opening a bottle of André Champagne, complete with plastic cork, in 1934 long before this product was available.

---

Quotes

Doctor John Brown: My aunt is as deaf as a post.
Tita: Then how can she carry on conversations?
Doctor John Brown: She reads lips, but when she is eating, she is too preoccupied to notice anything else. Watch.
[shouts]
Doctor John Brown: Tia Mary, I'm marrying Tita because the poor girl is crazy.
[Tia Mary continues eating.]

---

Connections

Referenced in Waiting for Guffman (1996)

User Reviews

A great film representation of magical realism

I'm greatly surprised at some of the negative comments for "Like Water for Chocolate", many of which state how it utterly failed to capture the passion or the mystical tone of Laura Esquivel's book.

I suppose it's only a matter of opinion(like pretty much everything, I guess), but I thought the movie represented the book's magical realism in a great way. The filmmakers knew not to exaggerate or take everything over the top(which could've been very easy), and this gives the fantastical moments-- such as all the guests becoming ill at the wedding or the shower bursting into flame as Gertrudis bathed-- an essential grounding in reality. This fact is also buttressed by the erotic musical score and the whole cast, who fit the characters from the novel perfectly IMO.

I would recommend giving the film of "Like Water for Chocolate" a go; and trying out the book as well.