Real Women Have Curves
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: America Ferrera, Brian Sites, George Lopez, Ingrid Oliu, Lupe OntiverosDVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); Spanish (Original Language); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 90 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-04-22
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Hbo Home Video
Movie Reviews of Real Women Have Curves
Movie Review: Designing a Life
Summary: 5 Stars
REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES is a cute coming of age story in which Ana, a first generation Mexican-American teenager, is living in a predominately Latino community of East Los Angeles. This movie is filled with culture and sun drenched streets.
America Ferrera has personal experience with this type of situation and this is perhaps why she adds such beauty and understanding to her role. She knows how even school counselors will not always encourage the dreams of their students. While in real life her mother encouraged her educational goals, in this movie, Ana's mother is completely against her daughter's dream of going to college.
As she is evolving very quickly into a woman, Ana learns to accept her body, her needs and her dreams about her future. While her attitude about various subjects are definitely more modern than her families traditional values, she eventually learns to respect and value her family members. Ana is trying to deal with her own inner desires and the expectations of her parents.
I found this movie amusing from the perspective of someone who used to sew all her own clothes as a teenager. Living in Africa did encourage such activities. This is a story about a teenager who thinks sewing and ironing are definitely not as fun as dating and reading a good book. I found out about dating after the sewing.
Like most teenagers in America, Ana finds a part-time job. What is amazing is that while attending Beverly Hills High School, she becomes almost unaware of what the rest of her family struggles with on a daily basis. I think this might have something to do with having to take three buses to get to school and three to get home. Her day is consumed with travel and walking.
On the last day of school, her mother competes for her attention and Ana chooses to ignore her mother's pain and go to school anyway. There is obviously a struggle between her family responsibilities and wanting to create her own life. Her mother (Lupe Ontiveros) is going through menopause and Ana is just finding out about her own sexuality.
The two women are separated by a wide gulf of misunderstandings and life experiences. We laugh as Ana's mother says she is pregnant, all while fearing her daughter might date and become pregnant. This movie tries to also teach a bit about birth control, but fails to emphasis the need for commitment and love before consummation. To Ana, sex just seems to be something fun to do and doesn't seem to care if she sees her boyfriend again. Perhaps this emphasizes her masculine side.
One of her supportive teacher, Mr. Guzman (George Lopez), keeps encouraging Ana to pursue her dreams of college, while her family wants to selfishly keep her to work in the sewing sweatshop. When Ana (the beautiful America Ferrera) does have to help her family to keep the factory working, she learns to appreciate how difficult life has been for her sister, Estela (Ingrid Oliu), and gains a new respect for her mother.
I thought this movie was cute enough to watch three times and enjoyed the commentary! I liked the fact that Ana is willing to accept herself and show the world what a "real" woman looks like.
Ana's mother is a real character and her facial expressions are at times just hilarious. She tries to teach Ana life lessons through stories, but it seems Ana is going to have to learn how to deal with life on her own. Mothers and daughters will relate well to this movie. For some reason they don't focus on any of Ana's female friendships, yet she does seem to have a rich family life and a boyfriend. She has a beautiful relationship with her grandfather who fully supports her in her dreams.
A word of advice: If you burn yourself with an iron, apply an ice cube immediately. It works!
A film about family and seeking fulfillment in your own life. I didn't really find this to be as much a comedy as a comforting story about finding your dreams.
~The Rebecca Review
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