El padrino (2004)

Director:

Damian Chapa

Writers:

Troy Barker (story)
Troy Barker (written by)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

The only color on the street is green

Plot:

In the streets of East Los Angeles, Manny is a formidable drug dealer. Impressed by his extravagant lifestyle and prowess...

Plot Keywords:

Drugs | Gangster | Prison | Drug Dealer | Father Son Relationship

Cast

Damian Chapa	...	Kilo
Sal Lopez	...	Loco
Emilio Rivera	...	Rudy
Tommy 'Tiny' Lister	...	T-Bone (as Tiny Lister)
Ismael 'East' Carlo	...	Manny
Jennifer Tilly	...	Sebeva
Stacy Keach	...	Gov. Lancaster
Robert Wagner	...	Paul Fisch
Gary Busey	...	Lars
Ralf Moeller	...	Special Agent Kurt Meyers
Joanna Pacula	...	Jessica Lancaster
Faye Dunaway	...	Atty. Gen. Navarro
Kathleen Quinlan	...	Judge Scorsi
Ricco Chapa	...	Miguel Jr.
Brad Dourif	...	Cyrus

Also Known As:

El padrino: The Latin Godfather (USA) (DVD title)

MPAA:

Rated R for pervasive strong violence and language, drug content and sexuality.

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Certification:

Germany:18 | Australia:R | USA:R

Filming Locations:

East Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

El Padrino LLC

Goofs:

Continuity: In the shoot out at the end, the silencer disappears and reappears multiple times.

Quotes:

Lars: You are a wasted species. You don't belong here.

Movie Connections:

Followed by El padrino 2 (2008)

Spectacularly Crap!

I'm not sure when I last saw a film as spectacularly crap as "El Padrino". I'm also not sure when I last laughed so hard or had so much fun. It's for exactly these reasons that I'm giving this film 10/10. "El Padrino" is bad film-making of the highest order and truly belongs in the crap hall of fame. Damian Chapa - I salute you! It's hard to pinpoint exactly why this film transcends its own pomposity to become a hugely entertaining, so-bad-it's-good masterpiece. But I think most of the credit lies with the casting of Jennifer Tilly as Sebeva. Jennifer Tilly is one of my favourite actresses. This woman has it all: looks, talent and obviously a fantastic sense of humour. That's the only reason I can think of why a classy lady of Asian heritage (one of Jennifer's parents is Chinese) in her 40s would choose the role of a young, drug-running Columbian prostitute.

The character of Sebeva really has to be seen to be believed. My eyes nearly popped out of my head when I first saw Jennifer dolled up like a Latina drag queen on crack but Sebeva's wardrobe is nothing in comparison to her appalling dialogue and Jennifer's tremendous over-acting. Just when I thought it couldn't possible get any better, Sebeva would say something like "I may be a whore, but I'm a loyal bitch" or roll around on a table in, what I assume is meant to be, an erotic manner. I also defy anyone with even the slightest knowledge of the Spanish language not to fall on the floor laughing when Sebeva comments en Espagnol, complete with Jennifer Tilly's breathy, American accent.

Apart from Sebeva, this film has a couple of interesting action sequences and a completely ludicrous serial killer subplot to pad out the rather dull father/son drug dealer scenario. After working over the drug cartels with this epic, it seems Damian Chapa's next opus will tackle the IRA. I, for one, can hardly wait!