A Day Without a Mexican (2004)

User Rating:

4.8/10   

Director:

Sergio Arau

Writers:

Sergio Arau (writer)
Yareli Arizmendi (writer)

Release Date:

6 August 2004 (Mexico)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Mystery

Tagline:

On May 14 there will be no Mexicans in California.

Plot:

One day California wakes up and not a single Latino is left in the state. They have all inexplicably dissappeared, chaos, tragedy, and comedy quickly ensue.

Plot Keywords:

Mexican | Border | Musician | Senator | Scientist

Awards:

3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Caroline Aaron	...	Aunt Gigi
Tony Abatemarco	...	Talk Show Host
Melinda Allen	...	Ellen Abercombie (as Melinda R. Allen)
Frankie J. Allison	...	Oficer Carr (as Frankie Jay Allison)
Fernando Arau	...	Undocumented 1
Yareli Arizmendi	...	Lila Rodriguez
Todd Babcock	...	Nick
Maria Beck	...	Officer Sanchez
Yeniffer Behrens	...	Suzy
Arell Blanton	...	Chris
Cassidy Paige Bringas	...	Tracy Abercrombie
Brian Brophy	...	Barney Montana
Pilar Camporredondo	...	Lila's Mom (as Maria Camporredondo Neeley)
Elpidia Carrillo	...	Cata
Larry Carroll	...	Newscaster

Also Known As:

Un día sin méxicanos (Mexico)

MPAA:

Rated R for language and brief sexuality.

Runtime:

USA:100 min | Argentina:100 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival)

Country:

USA | Mexico | Spain

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Brazil:12 | Argentina:16 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

San Diego, California, USA

Company:

Eye On The Ball Films

Trivia:

Eduardo Palomo's last film.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Senator Abercombie is declaring a state of emergency and telling the reporters the military is conducting reconnaissance missions, the F-16 shown flying into the fog has Washington (state) Air National Guard markings on it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip: The Christmas Show (#1.11)" (2006)

Soundtrack:

Raices

Fantasy meets mockumentary with a dash of pop up video.

A Day Without a Mexican contains, quite possibly, the most unique and effective employment of a fantasy element I've ever seen.

While I'm not sure how much impact this film has on people who aren't from, or at least very familiar with, life in California, I think it speaks massive volumes all while maintaining a very witty and fun sense of humor about itself. While it gets over-dramatically silly, it is SPOT ON about the capability of Californian behavior (and I say that as a third generation Southern Californian who was raised, in part, by a German/Mexican stepmother).

I've noticed complaints about bad acting and/or writing in this film. The writing itself is strong, the dialogue is funny, and the cultural jokes are bordering on perfection. The acting did leave room for improvement, but that's standard in independent films that boast such a major societal commentary.

This is not the kind of film that's going to mean everything to everyone. It's geared toward a specific audience, which seems to include me, as I quite enjoyed this picture.

If you want a movie that'll, at the very least, raise some discussion, check it out.