LA MUJER DE MI HERMANO A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2006 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): * 1/2
To call Ricardo de Montreuil's LA MUJER DE MI HERMANO a soap, as many will, is to denigrate the entire soap opera industry. It's got a traditional soap opera plot about a wife with an inattentive husband who insists sex is only for Saturdays. To get her daily adult requirement of sex, she turns to his brother to satisfy her. Like soaps, it's got some gorgeous stars. But what it does not have is one bit of genuine passion, energy or fire. Watching it is like viewing a sumptuous painting. The high gloss, static images may look beautiful, but they have no life to them.
After ten years of marriage, model gorgeous Zoe (Bárbara Mori) is getting tired of her "not now" husband Ignacio (Christian Meier), a handsome but cold business man. In contrast, Ignacio's brother Gonzalo (Manolo Cardona) is an artist with a big head of curly hair and a scruffy beard. Gonzalo is as laid back as his brother is uptight. Ignacio sees his brother as irresponsible and unsuccessful. Gonzalo, however, is a very happy man, except, that is, for his unfulfilled love for Zoe.
The clichéd script has a gay friend who keeps popping up out of nowhere to offer advice on the ways of love to Zoe. He should advise her to dump both of the men in her life since the movie never demonstrates any genuine chemistry -- positive or negative -- between any of the characters.
While Ignacio is out of town on business one night, Zoe decides to have a sleepover, so she invites her best friend to join her. When she asks Gonzalo to sleep with her but not "sleep" with her, don't be surprised if you can't suppress a groan. She then adds -- of course -- "nothing will happen." Right! And, when she asks him to cuddle with her more and then says, "no, no, no!" to his advances, you'll probably be thinking of the old quote from Hamlet of "the lady protests too much, methinks."
You may be thinking that, since Mori is an extremely attractive actress and since the movie is rated R, the film will at least be sensually satisfying. You would be so wrong. The sex, of the rolling bodies and swelling music variety, has all the erotic power of an Ivory soap commercial. There we are. Back to soap again.
LA MUJER DE MI HERMANO runs 1:33. The film is in Spanish with English subtitles. It is rated R for "sexuality and language" and would be acceptable for most teenagers.
The film opens nationwide in the United States on Friday, April 14, 2006. In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the AMC theaters, the Century theaters and the Camera Cinemas.
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