Rafael Inclán Movies
- 2006
- R
Javier Fox's drama Fuera del cielo (AKA Beyond Heaven, 2006) spans a 24-hour period. It begins at 6am with young Cucú, who is greeted by the return of his brother Malboro after a five-year separation. The brothers unite and embark on a long journey to the locales inhabited by their relatives, and wrap at 6am the following morning. The theme of Fox's film is "orphanhood," not in the literal sense (where children lose their parents to death) but in the abstract sense - the sense in which individuals can easily fall out of touch with their family ties. That estrangement brings to Cucú and Malboro a sense of social disconnectedness that causes a great deal of inner pain, pain they must strive to overcome. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Demián Bichir, Armando Hernandez, (more)
The perfect crime goes horribly, absurdly awry in this Spanish-language tale of avarice starring Y Tu Mamá También's Diego Luna. Told in real time, Nicotina charts the different paths taken by eight characters over the course of a botched diamond heist masterminded by tech geek Lolo (Luna), Tomson (Jésus Ochoa), and El Nene (Lucas Crespi), each of whom has his own Achilles' heel when it comes to committing crime. For Lolo, it's his incessant, unrequited attraction to his neighbor Andrea (Marta Belaustegui); for El Nene, it's his overwhelming need to look cool as a neophyte gangster; and for Tomson, it's his loose-cannon demeanor that threatens to do him -- and everyone else -- in. Over the course of an hour and a half, the trio becomes intertwined with a variety of mobsters, shop owners, and not-so-innocent bystanders, each encounter bringing unexpectedly violent obstacles to securing the precious gems. Nicotina premiered in North America at the 2003 Toronto International Film Festival before heading to the AFI film fest. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi
Arturo Ripstein's black comedy takes its title from a Mexican song about women as the downfall of men. Partitioned into four long scenes, the first sees a badly executed murder in which two killers ambush their victim, stone him to death, and use his wheelbarrow to tow away the body. The film then shifts its location to a crumbling police station where the wives of the bigamous murder victim have come to detail their grievances against their departed husband, and also to lay claim to his body. Eventually a coin is flipped to determine who will get the corpse, but the winner (Patricia Reyes Spindola, a Ripstein regular) starts to feel suckered by the other wives once funeral costs pile up. After a good deal of ranting to her oblivious, Nintendo-fixated daughter, the widow unwittingly enlists the help of one of the killers to transport her husband's body home. En route, she realizes the killer is wearing her husband's boots and duly attacks him with a baseball bat, taking back the boots and forcing the shoeless murderer to suck her toes in penance as her daughter looks on in disgust. The film then flashes back to the two days preceding the murder, when the dead man played on a losing baseball team with his killers; thus is revealed the true reason for his murder. La Perdicion de Los Hombres premiered at the 2000 San Sebastian Film Festival, where it won the festival's Golden Shell for "Best Film." ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi
- Starring:
- Patricia Reyes Spindola, Rafael Inclán, (more)
- 1999
- NR
- Add El Coronel No Tiene Quien Le Escriba to Queue Add El Coronel No Tiene Quien Le Escriba to top of Queue
Based on the novel of Gabriel Garcia Marquez by the same name, but set in the forties, the film is a reflection on life and its illusions by the Mexican master Arturo Ripstein. In a small coastal town in Mexico in the late 1940's, an obstinate colonel of the anticlerical Cristeros War keeps waiting for the pension that has been promised to him but never delivered. Every Friday, he goes down to the docks, dressed in his best suit in anticipation of the arrival of the letter announcing his pension. Everyone knows that he is waiting in vain, but he refuses to face reality, even though, deep in his heart, he knows that the letter will never arrive. His wife is suffering from asthma; their son Agustin was killed by the fascists; and the roof over their head will soon be taken away because of the unpaid mortgage. Yet the Colonel stands by his dream, refusing to give up despite poverty and hunger. He knows that if he lets go, there is nothing else left. His wife Lola proposes to sell the cock, which is the only thing left behind from their son. But the Colonel does not want to give up the fighting cock, which he believes will win one day. The story is rendered in a simple and straightforward narrative style unlike Ripstein's earlier work, which is more baroque, or Marquez's magical realist style. Repeated close-ups accentuate the damages of a long and hopeless wait on a person's inner strength. Veteran Fernando Lujan is remarkable as the Colonel, but Spanish Marisa Paredes shines as the wife who suffers in dignity. Salma Hayek has a brief appearance as the prostitute who had a relationship with Agustin. In competition at the 52nd Cannes Film Festival, 1999. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, Rovi
- Starring:
- Fernando Luján, Marisa Paredes, (more)
Mexican director Arturo Ripstein helmed this Mexican-Argentine-Spanish religious drama with Buñuelian overtones. Based on true events that took place in Mexico during the '70s, the film is updated to the present. Mama Dorita (Katy Jurado) leads the New Jerusalem cult with film-buff Papa Basilio (Francisco Rabal). Basilio's worship of movies explains the cult's costumes, imitative of Hollywood Biblical epics. When Dorita dies, she chooses teen Tomasa (Edwarda Gurrola) to give birth to the New Messiah. Unable to handle this sudden power, Tomasa instead proclaims herself to be the Whore of Babylon, forcing male cultists to have sex with her. Shown in the Certain Regard section at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
- Starring:
- Francisco Rabal, Katy Jurado, (more)
La Cantina concerns the unusual relationship between a father and a daughter. The dad is a warm and likable man, but he has a serious alcohol problem. His daughter loves him, but is continuously frustrated by his unreliability. Things finally reach the point where the daughter moves out, but the father is surprised when she ends up staying with one of his usual drinking buddies. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
A man with roving eyes discovers his bad habit gets him into several kinds of trouble in this comedy from Mexico. Pepe (Rafael Inclán) works at a luxurious resort hotel, where he is often tempted to spy on the guests and his fellow employees. After being caught one too many times looking where his eyes don't belong, Pepe loses his job, which causes his girlfriend to give him his walking papers. But Pepe isn't certain what he should do when, while sneaking around the hotel on his own time, he discovers a gang of kidnappers is making plans to abduct the children of the hotel's guests. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
The popular game of soccer gets an exciting new twist in this sexy Latin comedy starring Rafael Inclan and Guillermo Rivas. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Rafael Inclan stars again as Mofles in this comedy sequel to Mofles Y Los Mecanicos. Mofles and his garage mechanic buddies engage in drinking and alcoholic revelry. As is the case with many sequels, this fails to live up to the quality of the initial feature. The groups Generation 2000 and Los Infieles provide music in the routine club scenes. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Rafael Inclán, Manuel "Flaco" Ibanez, (more)
El Mofles (Rafael Inclan) is a poor mechanic who works at the Los Pits garage in this low-budget comedy. When he finds a bag full of money, Mofles is elated until the crooks who stole the loot come looking for him and the missing cash. Music groups Generacion 2000, Los Chicanos, and Grupo Centarario appear to help add to the thin plot. The comedy highlight is a birthday celebration that turns into a drunken fiesta. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Rafael Inclán, Maribel Fernandez, (more)
An all-star cast of popular Mexican comics appears in this uneven sex comedy. A wife paints a nude picture of her husband who suspects infidelity when he is not portrayed as being anatomically correct. A veterinarian becomes obsessed over a beautiful showgirl, and the devil emerges from hell to enjoy the earthly pleasures of bar hopping. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jorge Rivero, Sasha Montenegro, (more)
- 1987
For anyone wondering why the Mexican government has permitted Mexico City to become the most populous city in the world when it can barely support even one half its population decently, this film and films like it provide the welcome news that the government has been doing what little it can to discourage the emigration of poor rural people to the high-altitude, swampy city that suffers from catastrophic air pollution and the ever-present possibility of even more catastrophic volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. In the story, even a respectably middle-class man and his family can only barely get by in the brutal city. Dr. Antonio Arenas, a widowed doctor, has moved with his family to the crowded city after gaining a position at a large and prestigious hospital. Once there, he discovers that he is supposed to keep his position by turning a blind eye to all sorts of illegal and unscrupulous schemes or -- worse -- becoming actively involved in them. One infuriating and difficult situation after another arises, until he suffers a terrible tragedy. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Abril Campillo, Carmen Salinas, (more)
- 1987
In this comedy sequel to the 1985 film (the original lacks the "II" in the title), Constancio (Alfonso Zayas), the male gigolo with a six-foot, four-inch tall infant son, falls afoul of the mafia when he becomes the favorite kept man of the wife of an underworld bigshot. Before long, he, the mafioso's wife, and his peculiar infant son are on the run from the bad guys. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Alfonso Zayas, Sasha Montenegro, (more)
- 1986
In this comedy that's heavy with one-liners, the work ethic takes a drubbing and family values are touted as the true source of happiness, even for crooks. "El Multiple" (Rafael Inclan) is a devoted father and husband who loads up on stolen goods, smuggles his family and the loot into the United States, and then strikes it rich by selling his merchandise for high prices. In contrast to "El Multiple," Don Proculo (Pedro Weber) works hard to get a better life for himself by pouring his energy into his antique shop. One day while he's away on vacation, someone breaks into his store and steals everything of value. Don Proculo is forced out of business and "El Multiple" comes back, looking for a place to start a small family restaurant. For the characters in this film, family means more than a business, or the goods which so readily (and illegally) change hands. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Rafael Inclán, Maribel Fernandez, (more)
This across-the-border comedy features a heavy-footed Mexican cab driver who's pointed remarks fly just as fast as her cab. ~ Rovi
- Starring:
- Rafael Inclán, Maribel Fernandez, (more)
- 1986
- Add Dos Machos Que Ladran No Muerden to Queue Add Dos Machos Que Ladran No Muerden to top of Queue
In this Mexican comedy starring Alfonso Zayas, a troublemaker who has made more than his fair share of enemies in life is forced to disguise himself as a woman, a clown, and even an old man in order to elude his would-be attackers. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
This fast-paced tale of a bloody feud between two families is compelling in its action and characters. Julian Carrera (Valentin Trujillo, also the director) and his brother run an auto repair shop, both are well-adjusted and normal young men. One day their beloved father is robbed and murdered. Julian vows revenge on his killers, and a vendetta is set in motion. The first act of violence begets another and starts a flow of blood. Along the way, friends and female relationships, as well as music, add needed dimensions to the story. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Valentin Trujillo, Mario Almada, (more)
Rating Systems
Blockbuster
BLOCKBUSTER name, design and related marks are trademarks of Blockbuster L.L.C.
2013 Blockbuster L.L.C. All rights reserved.
Portions of Content Provided by Rovi Corporation. 2013 Rovi Corporation.