Starring Maribel Verdú, Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna
Written by Alfonso Cuarón and Carlos Cuarón
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón
Mexico 2001
106 mins
Like our last film 'Sideways' - 'Y Tu Mama También' is a road movie - a category usually thought of as an American genre but this one hails from south of the border - Mexico to be precise.
Mexico has given us some of the most powerful and interesting pictures of recent years. Directors like Alejándro Gonzalez Iñárritu and Guillermo Del Toro have brought their extraordinary visions to the screen in films like 'Amores Perros' and 'Pan's Labyrinth'. Their fellow filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón has made a wide variety of Spanish and English language movies including the intriguing dystopian fantasy 'The Children of Men', the best of the Harry Potter cycle 'The Prisoner Of Azkaban' and the exhilarating space thriller 'Gravity'.
Cuarón made 'Y Tu Mama También' after a spell in the US - avowedly as an escape from the straitjacket of Hollywood production techniques. This freewheeling story of Julio and Tenoch - two teenage boys who embark on a road trip with Luisa - a woman in her 30s - is on one level an erotic and exuberant road trip but underneath that is a much more thoughtful and lyrical movie. Controversial too - 'Y Tu Mama También' achieved notoriety for its frank portrayal of sex as the three protagonists combine and re-combine on the way to the beach of their dreams.
The film was shot by Emmanuel Lubezki - one of the most brilliant cinematographers working today. His work on 'Gravity', 'Birdman' and 'The Revenant' as well as this picture has raised the bar in camera technique and visual style.
Gael García Bernal who plays Julio is one of the brightest stars in Mexican cinema known not only for his acting but also as a producer and director.
'Y Tu Mama También' is not for the easily offended but this intimate and affecting drama will charm you along the way...
