Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Alfonso Cuarón: Y tu mamá también (2001)

A road movie with its own twists and turns, Alfonso Cuarón's Y Tu Mamá También / Y tu mamá también (2001) is a small budget independent production that makes a big impression. However, certain "earthy" scenes involving drugs and sex may scare people, even some who are perfectly complacent about seeing mass violence on the screen or in "real life."  Why is that? 
Its narration gives Y tu mamá también considerable weight and depth, even beyond the basic narrative arc -- more like a novel's. The way it's done is this: from time to time, background music and ambient noises are suddenly hushed, melting into silence as narration kicks in. Reminds me of Jean-Luc Godard in that way. We learn a lot of things that happen before and after the events that unfold visually during the film, providing context and a philosophical edge. 

Y tu mamá también, already part of the venerable Criterion Collection, may float around in one's consciousness for quite a while. And man, it's not like Alfonso Cuarón is some obscure figure. For example, maybe you've seen or heard of at least one of these other films he's directed: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Children of Men (2006), Gravity (2013). If not, is it possible that you're dead and just haven't realized it yet? 

Today's Rune: Fertility. 

3 comments:

Charles Gramlich said...

Yeah, we are much more exposed to scenes of violence of sex. Interesting.

Tom Sarmo said...

I was fascinated with this film--it did float around in my consciousness for quite awhile. Sort of a bizarre coming-of-age study. Well, if one managed to avoid a bizarre coming-of-age, I'm sorry for that =]

jodi said...

Erik-this one sounds very interesting. Maybe I will be able to catch it on the Sundance channel.