Amores Perros

Amores Perros, which roughly translates to Love's a Bitch, is a contemporary view of Mexico that isn't afraid to move at quite a clip. The film's director artfully weaves three stories from different socio-economic classes together, each expressing the titular theme in different ways. For American audiences the film may be best equated to Quentin Tarrentino's Pulp Fiction: the fast cuts, the romanticizing of underground culture, the chrono-illogical organization of scenes that demand the audience's attention in order to keep up.

Strong performances from all the cast give the film a very realistic feel. The coincidences and run-ins in Amores Perros seem ironic and leave the viewer feeling as if they've stumbled upon an epiphany rather than coming off as contrived and deus ex machina. This is the area of the picture that shines the most, engaging in a symbiotic relationship with the three-story construct; each one enhances and emphasizes the other. El Chivo appears often on the streets throughout the first two sections of the movie and in the third we see Romero and Susanna walking hurriedly past the ex-guerrilla on the street.

With each progressive story the intricacies of love between the characters grow. Octavio loves Susanna. Daniel loves Valeria, or does he love his wife? El Chivo loves his wife and daughter but his actions are for the greater good. With Octavio and Susanna the love blossoms too early due to Octavio's impatient urges and turns sickly in short time. By the end of the film, Octavio's bruised and beaten exterior, his shaved and scarred head, reflect the broken heart inside his chest.

Daniel and Valeria's relationship is also rushed and the tension and strain is quick to rear its extremely ugly head. It seems as if the two's love is superficially built on money and physical attraction and will surely crumble. However, the trials they face seem to bring them closer in the end, and the image of Daniel holding Valeria as she stares out the window at the symbol of a past she can never regain gives hope for something deeper.

Finally the film reaches El Chivo, a man who loved his family dearly but his country more. His story is most complex because he acts contrary to his feelings of love but seeks redemption at the film's end. This act of seeking redemption, not necessarily finding it yet but at least taking a step in the right direction, is the most progressive and hopeful outcome of all three stories. As he shaves off his beard and trims his hair I cannot help but be reminded of the symbolism of unruly hair in Half-Nelson.

This film review has been less informative and more analytical, so for those who have not yet seen the film but faithfully stuck to reading this up to this point here is a verdict you can take with you: watch it. This film is smart, entertaining, hip, yet sensible with important messages beneath the contemporary and Hollywood exterior.