_Note: I am about to review the 71 min. version of the film, this version was edited for TV, so it's likely that it has some scenes missing, which may cause damage to the films pacing or story, so until there's another version that I can see, this is what I am reviewing._ "Apuesta Contra La Muerte" also known as "Apuesta Con La Muerte" it's a mexploitation film about a young man named Juan, who tries to get away from his dysfunctional family, a father who lives in mediocrity, and an alcoholic mother, so he moves to live with his best friend since school, Mario, a rich boy who lives a life of excess and sleaze, at first, things go well for Juan and Mario, but he will soon find out just how reckless his friend is, and that he will be stuck in a life of crime and danger. The film it's directed by Ismael Rodríguez Jr. the very talented son of legendary filmmaker Ismael Rodríguez, his father always said that what really matters in a film it's the story, if you don't have a good story to hold your film, everything else will fall apart, and it looks like his son listened to him because in everyone of his films you find yourself engaged and invested, and this film it's no exception. For whatever flaws that this film may have, it seems pretty clear that it has a very good script, as you will find the characters to be very likable and you will also understand their frustrations and their motives, when the film starts you think you will be able to tell the spirit of the film, a basic melodrama with a few sleaze scenes, but as the film goes on, you realize that you are actually invested in the film, not many exploitation films do that, as the movie goes on, it get's darker and ends with a very depressing ending that may not be very well executed but it's still quite interesting. The acting in this film by our two main leads it's quite good, Juan (played by Edgardo Gazcón) it's quite a generous character who is just trying to get away from the troubles in his family, he is pushed to the limit by his friend, Mario (played by Sebastian Ligardo) who is always getting them in trouble, whether it is by playing Russian roulette with another man, racing in the opposite side of the freeway, or beating and abusing "his" women. The great Mario Almada is in this film, he doesn't really do much, he's just a father who wants his wife to stop drinking, he's average here, there isn't much to say about his performance, but it's nice to see him here, Lorena Velázquez does a good job at incarnating a lonely woman who becomes an alcoholic, she does a really good performance. This is a film about consequences, about how everything that you do in life affects someone else's life, whether it is in a good way or a bad way, it will affect someone, we see the concerned parents of the boy who dies in the Russian roulette bet, in one scene, Mario breaks the camera of a photographer in prison, and we see the aftermath of his actions, in a very intense scene, that leads to the climax, Juan's girlfriend says to a taxi driver "if you don't hurry, many peoples lives will be affected" (it doesn't sound as absurd in the film, it's actually quite compelling) that makes the movie more interesting as opposed to just showing violence on the screen, a very subtle script from the three writers of the film. Overall, I am willing to recommend the film if you can look past a few clunky scenes or an awkward ending, it's quite good for what it is.
When beautiful young Grace arrives in the isolated township of Dogville, the small community agrees to hide her from a gang of ruthless gangsters, and, in return, Grace agrees to do odd jobs for the townspeople.
After a whirlwind romance in Mexico, a beautiful heiress marries a man she barely knows with hardly a second thought. She finds his New York home full of his strange relations, and macabre rooms that are replicas of famous murder sites. One locked room contains the secret to her husband's obsession, and the truth about what happened to his first wife.
It's a major double-cross when former police officer Brian O'Conner teams up with his ex-con buddy Roman Pearce to transport a shipment of "dirty" money for shady Miami-based import-export dealer Carter Verone. But the guys are actually working with undercover agent Monica Fuentes to bring Verone down.
Richard Eyre’s stunning new production of Bizet’s opera was the talk of the town when it was unveiled on New Year’s Eve 2009. Elīna Garanča leads the cast as the iconic gypsy of the title—a woman desired by every man but determined to remain true to herself. Roberto Alagna is Don José, the soldier who falls under her spell and sacrifices everything for her love, only to be cast aside when the toreador Escamillo (Teddy Tahu Rhodes) piques Carmen’s interest. With dances created by star choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and conducted by rising maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin, this Carmen brings every aspect of Bizet’s tale to thrilling life, from its lighthearted beginning to its inevitably tragic climax.
Around the film hang fascinating questions about border politics, which I’ll touch on in an introduction before the screening. One of Eugene Buck’s motivations for making the film may have been his rough cross-examination during his kidnappers’ first trials, in October 1913, when defense attorneys cast him as a confused and unreliable witness against idealistic freedom fighters. On film he could reproduce the pursuit, the shootouts, his kidnapping, and his friend’s murder just as he had testified. Reenacting the crime on film may have been the best revenge—and a way to honor the sacrifice of Deputy Ortiz, a twenty-year police veteran and, for the era, a rare Mexican American lawman.
Ramon Antonio Brizuela is a criminal whose life passes between rounds, parties and showdowns. Recognized by a witness during an assault, he is taken to jail where he becomes aware of the unfair and corrupt judicial system.
A teenage thief tries to leave town to escape the violence that threatens him and he people he loves.
After several behavior problems, teenager John is admitted to a psychiatric clinic by his family. There he meets Judith, for who he soon falls in love. The problem is that she does not have long to live and they know it. This shall not prevent the emergence of a great romance in the clinic.
Although his alcoholism has been treated, Alain still feels he is deeply unwell and does not feel he can leave the detoxification clinic once and for all. His wife, living in New York, continues to pay for his treatment, but no longer contacts him directly. He intends to commit suicide, but first takes a ride to Paris to catch up with old friends.
In Mexico, two teenage boys and an attractive older woman embark on a road trip and learn a thing or two about life, friendship, sex, and each other.
A corrupt CIA agent Sands hires hitman El Mariachi to assassinate a Mexican general hired by a drug kingpin attempting a coup d'état of the President of Mexico.