drm_skr I love this movie. I remember I was seeing a play "Ragtime" and I wondered if an immigration movie/play existed that was not incredibly depressing and then I remembered "The Perez Family". It's like that excercise where a shrink tells the husband to pretend he's interested in sex with his wife and then it the feelings actually occur. Here they pretend to be a family to get through immigration and then they actually do begin to care for one another and be like a true family.I also loved how it could get a little surealistic at moments. For example when they first arrive in the Oragebowl and Juan fears they're gonna be shot and then they are suddenly surrounded by a laughing crowd. Or the moment Juan sees his wife kissing the cop and as he crushes the photo we see a red stain appear over his heart. That was so subtle I only caught it with repeated vewings. The soundtrach even is simpally amazing. And yes Marisa Tomei has never been hotter! ;-)I also loved a lot of the minor roles such as the Indian immigration official who clearly realizes what's going on and clearly doesn't care. I loved that little sarcastic eyeroll he does when he talks about, "Cowboys . . . and Indians!"Overall it's just such a sweet heartwarming film which is such a change from the usual "the more depressing the more deep and artistic" immigration film. Sure some of it was pretty silly, coincidental, and over the top but "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" wasn't?

don-cant At first, I thought this film had some promise. It could have gone either way - a drama or a comedy. It never made up its mind. There were some genuinely funny scenes, engaging enough to assume we could smile, if not laugh out loud. But that was not to be. Acting went over the top - one actor after another striving to be a Cuban, but none succeeding. Tomei was outrageously bad - phony accent, incomprehensible mood swings. Nothing about her character was consistent. As a matter of fact, none of the characters made much sense. Poor Chazz Palmenteri (Lt. Pirelli), an actor of some substance, had no substance here - the script not allowing meaning or motivation for his character. Alfred Molina (Perez) started out as dark and brooding, his love for the beautiful Carmela (Angela Houston) ruling his every thought. Then when he finally finds her, you'd think, wow, now this guy's going to go crazy to get her (after all, it's been twenty years in prison thinking only of her). What does he do? Runs away because an alarm system went off - and stays away. Mind you, this is his great love. And Carmela. What's with her? She's been prostrate for 20 yrs. thinking only of Perez and along comes a cop (Chazz) and she's totally overwhelmed. Her brother does not seem to not want Carmela and Perez to reunite, but then, for no reason at all, when he sees Perez at a dance where Carmella is dancing happily with Chazz, he screams to Carmela something like "Look, look, it's Perez, he's here." Carmela pulls out a gun and aims it at poor Perez - she's going to shoot him! OK, so she doesn't recognize him, maybe, but why shoot the poor guy who is in no way threatening, just a sad, pleading face on the dance floor. Explain that to me. Sorry, I don't see it. If ever there was a film where character motivation was weak, indeed, absent, this is it.

rsd22 I love Marisa Tomei's acting ability and expected a lot from this movie because of her. She is, in fact, the unchallenged star, and the film is clearly a must-see for her fans. However, I didn't think the story itself worked as a romantic comedy - - there's a child murdered as a plot point, for heaven's sake! It could have worked as serious drama, and occasionally drifted in that direction, but 'drift' is the operative word here. Even some of the attempts at comic elements, such as the naked 'father-in-law', the paranoid brother-in-law, and the ironic by-play between the federal agent and the police woman seemed forced and contrived. And the romantic tension between Angelica Huston and Chaz Palminteri is non-existent, although we are supposed to believe it overcomes the love she has maintained for 20 years for the husband left behind in Cuba - and now restored to her. Watch this film for a great Marisa Tomei performance, but don't expect much more.

bob the moo When President Carter declared an open door policy to anyone who wanted to escape Cuba and come to America, Castro used this to clear his jails of criminals and political prisoners. When Juan Raul Perez gets on the boat he hopes his wife will be there to meet him, as she fled to the US decades ago. When she doesn't come he ends up in the camp with everyone else, including the feisty Dorita Evita Perez. The two need a sponsor to get out of the camp and realise that things would be easier if they were a family. For that reason they pretend to be married and gradually start putting their fake family in place.I was drawn to this film by the cast list and in fairness I should have spotted that this film about Cubans had very few Cuban or even Latino actors in it. Anyway, aside from that the plot has historical context but I am not familiar enough with it to say if it was accurate or not, although I really don't think it matters very much. The film tries to fizzle with Latin spirit while at the same time delivering a rather convoluted romantic drama of sorts. It partly works but the writing isn't great and the film failed to really engage me as it just seemed a little forced as if it had been a good idea once but had had so many knobs added to it that it got a little daffy. After an hour it settles into the formulaic mould it was in all along, the historical context forgotten and the clichés allowed to flow. If you can't see where this is going then I salute your ability to blindly accept what is given to you.Talking of clichés, the casting of so few Hispanic/Cuban/Latino actors was a mystery to me. Surely it would have been possible to get closer than Italian, which is what quite a few of the main characters appear to be. Tomei was the name that drew me to this film but in turns her role is good and bad. She has an important role and it was necessary for her to be feisty etc but she overdoes it a little bit - hammy up her Latin cliché at the start for all she is worth; she gets better though. Molina is another strange choice but he does well in his role and carries some dignity through the film - it's not his fault that the script gets silly in trying to keep him and Huston apart. Huston is OK but her subplot seems added on to make the ending more palatable to the audience (god forbid anyone should be hurt). For this same reason, Palminteri is wasted. Cruz is good and Chowdhry is quite funny, but why Gallo even bothered is beyond me - pre-fame I suppose. SNL's Cleghorne plays a cop and, in the spirit of ethnic clichés, pushes the `oh-no-she-didn't' eye-rolling, `talk to the hand', neck moving black character for all she is worth - when she does it as a joke it is OK but here it just felt like laziness - especially for such a minor character.Overall, any Hollywood film with Latinos/Cubans/Hispanics in it is going to force the rhythm for all it is worth and here is no different. It starts out boasting historical context and spice, falls into a rather convoluted series of plot twists that end up taking the film down a rom-com road to a solution that, although badly delivered, unthinkable and out-of-nowhere, was obvious from about 30 minutes into the film.