How to be a Latin Lover - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

How to be a Latin Lover

Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score: ​

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Movie

How to be a Latin Lover was another one of those films that I FULLY expected to be a complete and utter train wreck. The trailer was beyond cheesy, and it starred a cadre of “over the hill” actors who have been on the downward slide of their fame bell curve for the last several years. HOWEVER, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the tongue in cheek ethnic comedy was hilariously funny despite relying on some well used comedic tropes along the way. The film leans towards hyperbole with the ethnic jokes, but every single one of the actors are winking and nodding at the camera, gleefully playing up the stereotypes with a sort of Charlie Chaplin like goofiness that it turns out to be incredibly infectious and side splitting at times. There’s some comedic timing issues, and the insertion of Rob Riggle is ALWAYS a negative (I can’t think of a role that I think would make him palatable), but the entertainment is certainly there.

The film starts out laying the groundwork for the kind of slapstick humor we’re about to witness by going with a visual sight gag of our hero’s father ramming right through their house after coming from from a long trucking gig. Young Maximo vows to never over work like his father and decides to become a gold digger (yes, this is played tongue in cheek). Fast forward a decade and Maximo (now played by Vadhir Derbez) is a HUNK of a man. Charming, good looking, as can be he’s looking for his new sugar mama, and finds it in 55 year old Peggy, a supermarket millionaire WITHOUT a husband. Fast forward ANOTHER 25 years and we find Maximo (finally played by Eugenio Derbez) living his dream life with his sugar mama. Peggy (Renee Taylor) is hitting 80 and Maximo is a slightly pot bellied shell of his former playboy self, but he still has Peggy wrapped around his finger. Coasting around in his mansion that is all paid for, eating food that is all paid for, and utilizing servants that are all paid for, Maximo has become the ultimate gold digger. That is, until Peggy cheats on him with a younger gold digger (played hilariously by Michael Cera) and sends him packing.

Now Maximo is forced to actually go out into the real world and make something of himself, which amounts to him slumming it by bumming a place to stay from his blue collar sister, Sara (Salma Hayek), and her young son Hugo (Raphael Alejandro). Naturally Maximo wants to get back to being a gold digger once more, so he’s got his eyes set on a richer and older sugar mama, and that comes in the form of one of Hugo’s classmate’s grandmother, Celeste (Raquel Welch) and he will stop at NOTHING to get in her good graces, and hopefully inside of her wallet.

How to be a Latin Lover is a pleasant surprise from all involved. I honestly thought we were going to see another bomb from the get go, but it is a cute and slightly naughty take on the classic “girl trying to sleep her way to the top” scenario. Just in reverse. Eugenio Derbez and Rob Lowe are HILARIOUS as the middle aged playboys turned gold diggers. Both of them play the part of the trophy husband with glee and a wink at the camera with picture perfect results. Salma is adorable as his blue collar sister who’s had it up to here with his antics, and even Raphael is solid as a child actor (I get very little enjoyment from most child actors). There's also a few quick cameos by Kristen Bell (who's adorable as usual) that garner some good chuckles as well.

At the same time the story does have its fair share of faults. There’s the cliched “man must learn to love the simple things in life” underpinnings, as well as the inclusion of some comedic beats that really don’t work. Much of the humor is Three Stooges or Charlie Chaplin physical comedy, but the inclusion of Rob Riggle is NEVER a good sign. I honestly can’t think of him in a role that is even remotely funny. Not to mention the fact that Rob Corddry is SORELY underutilized in the film as Raquel Welch’s chauffeur. Sight gag usually garner the most laughs, and the witty banter (while solid) sometimes fails to sink every gag. It’s a solid effort, and a fun watch for sure, but it’s not a 100% perfect comedy.




Rating:

Rated PG-13 for crude humor, sexual references and gestures, and for brief nudity




Video:

Lionsgate offers How to be a Latin Lover on Blu-ray with a stunning looking 2.40:1 AVC encoded disc. Supposedly the film was shot on Arri Alex cameras, and the result is a fantastically sharp and clear image that really pops at every turn. The sun soaked movie is full of brightly lit scenes, with lots of vibrant color ranging from the bright red of a muscle shirt, to the shiny banana yellow of Maximo’s speedo. Facial details are amazingly clear, with every facial wrinkle and silver hair on the aging lover’s skin coming through with crystal clear precision. Blacks are deep and inky, and there is an overall sense of being so clear that you can reach your hand through the screen and actually touch the actors. There’s a few teensy glimpses of color banding, but otherwise Lionsgate presents a REALLY well done disc.




Audio:

The main track for How to be a Latin Lover claims to be an English track in DTS-HD MA lossless (with a secondary track in Spanish), but it’s really a hybrid mix as there is so much Spanish intermingled with the English that it’s almost a perfect 50/50 mix of the two. This is mainly a dramatic comedy, so the mix is a bit front heavy, with a strong emphasis on the vocals. The Latin inspired Salsa score is vibrant and brings out the surrounds a bit, and the little bit of action that does happens livens up the sound stage nicely enough. It’s not a track that really asks a whole lot, but the LFE is punchy, and the surrounds are active enough to have it be more than capable of doing what is asked of it without flaws.
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Extras:

• Deleted and Extended Scenes
• "Show Me Your ! Learning How to Be a Latin Lover" Featurette
• "A Little Help from My Friends" Featurette
• Audio Commentary with Director Ken Marino, Producer Ben Odell and Editor John Daigle

Final Score: ​

As I said, I really expected How to be a Latin Lover to be a complete and utter train wreck. And while it does have quite a few comedic cliches blended in, I had a great time with the movie. Everyone is simply having a blast with their characters, and besides the inclusion of Rob Riggle, everyone is hilariously funny as well. It’s a simple style of physical humor that is very cheesy, but it rings true to the heart and everyone involved does so much better than I ever was expecting. Lionsgate has done a phenomenal job with the technical specs, and it gives me pleasure to give it a solid thumbs up as a fun comedic watch.




Technical Specifications:

Starring: Selma Hayeck, Eugenio Derbez, Raphael Alejandro
Directed by: Ken Marino
Written by: Chris Spain, Jon Zack
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1 AVC
Audio: English: Dolby DTS-HD MA 5.1, Spanish DD 5.1
Studio: Lionsgate
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 116 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: August 15th, 2017

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• Michael Scott
• May 11, 2017

Recommendation: Fun Watch

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. I will add this to my watch list.