Review: Rudo y Cursi (2009)

[Steve Rhodes]

RUDO Y CURSI
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2009 Steve Rhodes

RATING (0 TO ****):  ** 1/2

"The poorest of places are where you'll find the diamond in the rough," the 
narrator tells us in RUDO Y CURSI.  The film reunites Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN's 
two stars, Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal, who play brothers Beto and 
Tato.  While there's nothing wrong with their latest collaboration, it never 
reaches the level of the consistently entertaining Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN.

RUDO Y CURSI is best in its opening section, which is set in a poor but 
happy village in Mexico near a banana plantation.  The evocative sets, as 
well as the sound of birds and domestic animals, perfectly capture the 
feeling of life there.

But we soon leave village life and head for the hustle and bustle of noisy 
Mexico City, where the sounds we hear are of belching automobiles rather 
than melodious animals.  Some of the people there prove to act like animals 
too, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

One day a sports agent in a flashy, red Corvette convertible has a flat tire 
outside of the little hamlet where Beto and Tato live.  This rags-to-riches 
(and maybe back again) story gets into gear when the agent watches Beto, as 
a goalie, and Tato, as a kicker, in a local soccer game.  This very 
gregarious and likable agent starts spinning a tale of riches to be made in 
the world of pro soccer for the two brothers.  (The film's title comes from 
the brothers' nicknames of Rudo for Beto and Cursi for Tato.)

Before the brothers know it, they are whisked off to Mexico City to join 
different teams.  As long as their playing improves, the wealth that they've 
never before known keeps coming their way.  But, this being Mexico, everyone 
demands their cut of the action.  From the agent to the coach, everyone has 
their hand out, so, while the riches keep coming to the brothers, the money 
appears to be flowing out even faster than it's coming in.

Since they play for different teams, you can probably guess where and under 
what circumstances the ending will occur.  Once the plot is set up, 
everything is fairly predictable after that.  This isn't as much of a 
problem as is the story's inability to be particularly successful as either 
a comedy or a tragedy.  We like the brothers.  We feel kind of sorry for 
them.  But, on the whole, the movie just doesn't produce very strong 
reactions one way or the other.

While it's never a bad movie, it is never a memorable one either.  It's one 
of those comedies that produces no laughs, at least not from me.  I loved Y 
TU MAMA TAMBIEN, but I found RUDO Y CURSI merely okay.  Finally, although I 
am not a soccer fan, I should point out that, if you go just to see the 
soccer, you'll be really disappointed, since there is remarkably little 
soccer shown in the movie.  The camera is frequently more interested in the 
reaction from the stands than what is happening on the field.

RUDO Y CURSI runs 1:41.  The film is in Spanish with English subtitles.  It 
is rated R for "pervasive language, sexual content and brief drug use" and 
would be acceptable for teenagers.

The film opens nationwide in the United States on May 15, 2009.  In the 
Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the Camera Cinemas.

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