patscheer2005 Reviews

30 Days (I) (2006)

Good intentions and good plot but no substance......

[6/10 · 7 January 2007]

30 Days tells the story of two rival basketball players, one black and one white each from the Inner City and the Suburbs, who are forced to change their preconceived notions about the other's race and background.

30 Days has the best intentions and does not hesitate to show us the pain, the hurt, and the hate that prejudice and racism bring about in society. However, the acting is second rate, the plot is a little too convenient as to fit the circumstances that the characters are living, and the ending is somewhat unrealistic for a movie that deals with prejudice and hatred.

At the end of this movie, I stood up and clapped so hard my palms hurt. The ending definitely gives hope but it so unrealistic and it was acted out so badly that It took away from the magic.

30 Days is a good movie, don't get me wrong, but it could have been even better if a more known cast was at the lead and if it had a bigger budget.

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005)

Excellent film, captures the essence of true friendship

[10/10 · 19 July 2006]

I have never read the book that this movie was based on but now I am definitely out to try it out. I'm a guy and as shocking as this may sound, this movie touched me in a way that very few other movies have. The acting was superb, all four of the leading protagonists had their moment to shine on screen when dealing with their own personal turmoils and problems. I really enjoyed the performance of America Ferrera as Carmen.

The storyline follows a group of four friends during a special summer before their junior year in high school where they are forced to separate to go to different places around the world. Bridget to soccer camp in Baja California, Mexico, Lena to Greece, Carmen to South Carolina, and Tibby who stayed back home. Very heartfelt and touching story and superb acting by the whole cast.

Amarte es mi pecado (2004)

Excellent telenovela with a very interesting plot and good acting.......

[10/10 · 27 June 2006]

Yadhira Carillo convinced us that she could be the leading lady in another critically acclaimed soap opera, La Otra(The Other Woman) where she played two identical women with mirroring principles and values. In Amarte es mi Pecado, she plays Nora Madrigal de Orta who vowed to her father that she will marry someone rich so that she can be happy for the rest of her life. Nora is keen on doing this until she meets Arturo whom she falls totally in love with. They share a beautiful relationship in spite of the efforts made by her ambitious and greedy Aunt Alejandra and her stepmother Isaura to keep her from reaching eternal happiness. In a trip to Miami, Arturo cheats on Nora with a young woman named Paulina who falls madly in love with Nora's fiancé. When Arturo returns to Michoacan, he tells Nora what happened hoping that his honesty will make Nora think twice before putting off their wedding....but that doesn't happen. Nora is enraged and heartbroken when hearing about Arturo's affair and she decides to keep her pregnancy a secret. Isaura kills off Alejandra with the aide of her ugly and envious daughter Casilda(Who is the best character in the show). In an attempt to make Nora suffer even more and in order to make some money Isaura trades Casilda's and Nora's babies when they give birth. Nora believes that Casilda's dead baby is her own and tragedy once more strikes. After this, Nora can take no more and she decided to follow her dreams and become a successful and powerful model. With her power, overpowering beauty, and her money she vows to avenge the death of her daughter and vows to avenge every single tragedy and heartbreak that people put her trough. Nora becomes the one person who no one wants to mess with because tragedy and heartbreak have turned her into a self-sufficient woman who will stop at nothing to make the people who hurt her, pay for their evil deeds.

With an excellent adaptation by Liliana Abud, produced by the one and only Ernesto Alonso, directed by Benjamin Cann, and starring Yadhira Carillo, Sergio Sendel, Alessandra Rosaldo, Margarita Isabel, Sylvia PAsquel, Alexis Ayala, and Tiare Scanda as Casilda. A very good telenovela, it should be out on DVD soon in the United States.

The Spring (2001–2002)

Simply the best of the new century!

[27 July 2005]

The days when telenovelas revolved around a romance and all the things that affected it went down the drain! Just when we thought all hope was lost in the area of Mexican telenovelas, a small light shone on the screen. That light was called El manantial. Starring Adela Noriega, Mauricio Islas, Alejandro Tommassi, Daniela Romo, and Karyme Lozano, the soap tells the story of two lovers who dare not cross the boundaries set by their rival families, the Valdez and Ramirez. Alfonsina and Alejandro fall in love without knowing the truth about the rivalry that surrounds both of them. Years back, Justo Ramirez ,played magnificently by Tommassi, suffered an "accident" after Rigoberto(special appearance by Cesar Evora) found him with his wife. Rigoberto was murdered by Fransisca(a heartwrenching performance by the one and only Azela Robinson) and that is where the hate begins. But love is stronger and despite Barbara ,Lozano's young villain character, they manage to overcome obstacles like Alfonsina's rape at Justo's hands and the lie about how both of them are kin to each other. El Manantial was an excellent telenovela, well written, fast paced, and well acted! The novela has a violent start but its well justified in the story and the acting is superb! The only other novelas that have satisfied me to the degree of this one have been Amarte es mi pecado, Amor Real, and Rubi. I totally recommend it and you can buy the DVD at Blockbuster, Wal Mart, or Target! Watch it!

Humble Maria (1995–1996)

Maria la del Barrio the best of the Maria trilogy!

[27 June 2005]

This telenovela tells the story of a girl who falls in love with the son of the man who took her out of poverty. In her way though exists Soraya Montenegro who is the antagonist. Itati Cantoral gave life to the evilest villain known to Mexican audiences. Soraya committed many atrocities so that she could get Maria out of the way but her plans fail as she is thrown out of a seven floor balcony when she is trying to get rid of her lover who is trying to blackmail her. Soraya comes back from the dead(not literally) twenty years later and there makes Maria seem as the suspect of the murder of her mother(Soraya Killed her). Many ordeals ensue until the last episode which haunts me to this day! The acting was great and the storyline very interesting, way more interesting than any American soap opera. See it if u can, u wont regret it!

Wooden Woman (2004–2005)

Not as bad as Las Vias del Amor but it still bad!!!!!!!

[11 January 2005]

This telenovela is one of the worst because of it's bad acting and incredible plot and storyline. This novela is not as bad as Emilio Larrosa's last production Las Vias del Amor but its around the same level! Edith Gonzalez, Jaime Camil, Maria Sorte, and Adamari Lopez are the resumable aspects of this soap opera and thats pretty much it! Too bad because the novela had a good beginning! After another Televisa disaster "Velo de Novia" Univision decided to put this trash on but its gonna be over in March so hold on a lil more people! One of the few things I like from this soap is the beautiful song "Mujer de Madera" performed by Cristian Castro.

The Parkers (1999–2023)

It's da bomb!

[11 July 2004]

The Parkers has stolen the hearts of many people throughout it's run on UPN on Monday nights. Now that it is in syndication I laugh with Nikki, Kim, and the gang every day. The Parkers is very entertaining and sometimes even educational(Not with Kim tough).My favorite episode was the episode when T found out his honey was HIV positive which also dealt with racism.I am hispanic but I feel identified with the African American community also. Monique's character Nikki, is not scared to speak her mind and I really think that's one of the reason why her character has been successful. The PArkers is the best show on UPN. No other show on UPN can make me laugh as much as the Parkers On a scale of 1 to 10 I give it a 9.