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20 reviews in total

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6 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
A wonderful scene, 10 May 1999
Author: Oscar-48 from Zoetermeer, Holland

The following tender scene (in an otherwise male-oriented movie) is totally unexpected: Jimmy Smits is a macho and is busy with his car, his wife (Elpidia Carrillo) whom he only married so she wouldn't be deported, comes up to him and changes the music in the cassette-player. She tries to get him to dance with her, right there on the street. At first he doesn't want to, but the way by how she finally succeeds is really a must to see. He even asks her at the end of the dance "Will you teach me how to salsa?". For only this scene one should rent the video, the rest of the movie isn't bad either!

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6 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
'My Family', 26 April 2004

Author: rah604 from Canada

'My Family' is a compelling tale spanning three generations about a family of Mexican origin living in Los Angeles. It starts with the father of the family, Jose Sanchez (terrifically played by Jacob Vargas), making a one year journey on foot from Mexico to Los Angeles. Once there, he meets and marries the love of his life, Maria (Jennifer Lopez, in an interesting performance). After, Maria survives a tragic separation, she and Jose settle in Los Angeles and raise a family of six.

There is a tremendous amount of expectation here, namely because Francis Ford Coppola, who crafted arguably the most exhilarating family saga in the Godfather pictures, is an executive producer. But, My Family is nowhere near in the same league as films like 'The Godfather'. Rather, 'My Family' turns out to be a great film that could have been better. One glaring flaw is in the script written by Gregory Nava and Anna Thomas is that too often, the script relies on tragedies to stir our emotions. Consequently, the emotion presented in the film feel fake at times. Particularly, in the scenes involving Jimmy attempting to bond with his only son, Carlitos.

Despite the missteps in the film, there are many positives to draw upon. The strong performances of the cast. Jimmy Smits, in particular, dominates the film with an intense and yet affecting performance. The film hardly ever succumbs to being a standard tear-jerker or phony. Instead, the film succeeds at creating a touching and provocative portrait of a family's struggles and tribulations in a world that hardly seems just.

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5 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
A great peek into Mexican life, 24 June 2002

Author: Agent10 from Tucson, AZ

Mexican culture has rarely been pictured in the Hollywood cinema (even though they we are the biggest minority in the country!), but this film probably rates as the best Mexican-themed film (until further notice). The evolution of the family's house really makes this an interesting image in regards to the lives of the family. The intersecting lives of the family are all well thought out, even though it all seems rather convenient they all have these different personas and political aspirations. When I first watched this film, I thought it was one of the greatest movies of all time. Instead of portraying Mexicans as lazy, this film really encompassed the cultural aspects and fears of the common Mexican man. A great film to watch, even if you aren't Mexican.

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3 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
Fantastic Latino movie, 25 January 2002

Author: Vitor-18

This is one of the best Latino movies I ever see. Story is great and the problems are real. The characters are well played. If you like "the goodfather" here's the hispanic version!

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3 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
Emotional roller coaster..., 29 September 1998

Author: (stephanie@joymail.com)

I really enjoyed this movie. If you know anything about Mexican culture, it should really make you laugh! Of course, it also has its moments of tragedy but somehow everything ends up being okay. I liked it! It's definitely a movie that makes you feel!

Esai Morales, Chucho, does an excellent job! I think it's some of the best acting I've ever seen him do.

I hope you see it!

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4 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
'My Family', 26 April 2004

Author: rah604 from Canada

'My Family' is a compelling tale spanning three generations about a family of Mexican origin living in Los Angeles. It starts with the father of the family, Jose Sanchez (terrifically played by Jacob Vargas), making a one year journey on foot from Mexico to Los Angeles. Once there, he meets and marries the love of his life, Maria (Jennifer Lopez, in an interesting performance). After, Maria survives a tragic separation from her husband, they both settle down in Los Angeles and raise a family of six.

There is a tremendous amount of expectation here, namely because Francis Ford Coppola, who crafted arguably the most exhilarating family saga in the Godfather pictures, is an executive producer. But, My Family is nowhere near in the same league as films like 'The Godfather'. Rather, 'My Family' turns out to be a great film that could have been better. One glaring flaw is in the script written by Gregory Nava and Anna Thomas. Too often, the script relies on tragedies to stir our emotions. Consequently, the emotion presented in the film feels fake at times. Particularly, in the scenes involving Jimmy attempting to bond with his only son, Carlitos.

Despite the missteps in the film, there are many positives to draw upon. The strong performances of the cast. Jimmy Smits, in particular, dominates the film with an intense and yet affecting performance. The film hardly ever succumbs to being a standard tear-jerker or phony. Instead, the film succeeds at creating a touching and provocative portrait of a family's struggles and tribulations in a world that hardly seems just.

Rating: (8/10)

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2 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
Interesting portrayal of a family, 24 July 2002

Author: jamesnasso

Very interesting film, mainly because it managed to avoid the cliches and the endless navel gazing that most movies with that theme would fall into. The story flowed gracefully and realistically and showcased a great cast of actors in unpretentious dramatic situations.

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3 out of 5 people found the following review useful:
A great work, 31 May 2006

Author: LordB13 from United States

Mi Familia is a mini masterpiece. It uses all manner of genre styles to tell its story and amazingly it works. This is a film with so much passion and significance it is almost tiring to praise it for fear of running out of breath. You could call this film an epic or a saga since it deals with many generations of the same family. The film never shies away from making a social comment or two and deals directly with the issues at hand in whatever time period it happens to take place in. The family has never had an easy life, but the closing statement rings true in that despite the hardships they have been made to endure they have lead an incredibly good life. More than twice this family is broken up by the racial hatred and civilly unjust policies of their times, but they always stick together and no matter what happens or who does what this family is truly unbreakable. All performances are fantastic but there is one the really sticks out. Jimmy Smits has proved time and again that he is a capable actor but his work in this film is simply amazing.

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4 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
Que bueno, 6 May 2003

Author: George Parker from Orange County, CA USA

"My Family" peers into the lives of three generations of an East L.A. Mexican-American family moving through time from generation to generation. Focusing mostly on the core family group which chooses to reside in the same house in the barrio and spending most of the time with the male family members, the film gives a skewed view of the Mexican-American condition. However, it does a good job of showing what life was like for one family albeit melodramatic, stereotypical, and contrived for dramatic value. Lacking the verve, passion, color, and creativity of Showtime's "Resurrection Blvd" (though both share some cast members), "My Family" is an okay middle-of-the-marquee watch for anyone interested in Mex-Am issues or family stories in general. (B-)

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Liked it, will film a part 2, 10 April 2012

Author: Sunday Gracia from Arkansas, United States

This one hit close to home with me, especially with the characters. Chucho is a fun character that seemed to just be chased by bad luck, and some Hispanics, especially the older ones, are extremely superstitious. But it was funny how close the Chucho character was to the character that same actor played on "La Bamba." And Jimmy... well, that character brings so many memories of one of my cousins life... who has been in and out of prison... he's crude, rude, and can be ruthless, but will help you any way he can, especially if you're family. As a filmmaker, I'm hoping to bring a non-integrated part 2 to this, but the background of the adventure of my lineage is exciting on both father and mother's side. It'll be filled with the unexplained, the pain and drama, Spanish royal connections, and treasure.... which still remains hidden to this day.

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