Casa de mi Padre
Will Ferrell takes on the concept of the telenovela in this satirical look at Spanish/Mexican cinema. Armando (Ferrell) is a rancher who hasn’t quite found his raison d’etre, still living under his father’s roof he’s the laughing stock of the family. When brother Raul (Diego Luna) comes home with his stunning bride to be, Sonia(Genesis Rodriguez), Armando can’t help but feel his own shame. But as the evil Onza (Gael Garcia Bernal) moves in to mark his territory as a drug lord a weakness within Raul becomes apparent. Now it’s up Armando to save the family name, win the heart of Sonia, and find his strength from the mythical white mountain lion.
With plenty of nods to the schtick and schlock of the genre Ferrell is right at home and up to his usual bag of tricks, only this time completely in Spanish and with subtitles. The laughs are hit and miss. And, I have to admit I have concerns as to what the audience for this will be as its appeal seems a bit limited. Also, when it’s a safe bet to figure the most expensive prop or set piece is an animatronic lion from Henson Studio’s, that’s kind of saying something of the film overall. But then again, nobody ever accused a telenovela of being overproduced or big budget and that’s kind of the point. Overall, it’s brief, could have been even just a smidge shorter, and if you’re a fan of Ferrell you’ll probably find enough to keep you all the way through the credits. Truly though my gut says this is more of a rental. Casa de mi Padre is rated R.