Themes: Kids in Trouble, Inner City Blues, Street Gangs
Main Cast: Angel Aviles, Seidy Lopez, Jacob Vargas
Release Year: 1993
Country: US
Run Time: 92 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Neighborhood pride runs deep in Echo Park, so when two lifelong friends join the local gang as a matter of course, they're handed down gang names from the previous generation of homegirls. Unfortunately, Sad Girl (Angel Aviles) and Mousie (Seidy Lopez) don't remain friends for long. When Mousie withdraws into herself to cope with the responsibilities of young motherhood after bearing the child of her one true love, Ernesto (Jacob Vargas), Sad Girl and Ernesto turn to each other for comfort. Soon, Sad Girl herself ends up pregnant, and warm sisterhood cools to an icy feud. Ernesto starts dealing drugs to support his two young families -- and to outfit the gussied-up low rider that he hides from both of his unsuspecting girlfriends. The economic and romantic entanglements of these three characters serve as the entry point into this multifaceted exploration of L.A. street life, but Mi Vida Loca rapidly expands in scope to take in other characters, most of them female. Bleach-blond Whisper (Nelida Lopez), for instance, learns the drug-dealing ropes from Ernesto and considers crossing gender lines to open her own operation. The slightly older Giggles (Marlo Marron), however, refuses to fall into old dependencies and habits after being imprisoned for four years for a crime her boyfriend committed. Sad Girl's sister, La Blue Eyes (Magali Alvarado), the only character to choose college over gang life, chances upon a poem written by a prison inmate and becomes hopelessly smitten, abandoning her books for a passionate jailhouse correspondence. The focus of Mi Vida Loca shifts freely between these and several other characters, many of whom take turns providing narration and context. The director's daughter, Tiffany Anders, has a small role in the film alongside many real-life Echo Park denizens; several musicians and film directors also make cameos, among them Spike Jonze, Kurt Voss, Kid Frost, and the members of Los Lobos. Salma Hayek got her SAG card by playing a tiny role. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
Review
It would be easy to question the motives behind a white director's portrayal of Latina gang life if it weren't as respectful, humane, and impassive as Mi Vida Loca. We get no sensational violence or easy answers here; instead, writer/director Allison Anders adopts an almost documentarian approach that lets themes and narrative threads emerge organically while the characters -- and their lifestyles -- speak eloquently for themselves. Even-handed and only rarely resorting to boys-in-the-hood clichés, the film laces its dramatic scenarios with plenty of character-driven belly laughs. The feminist subtext may seem a bit heavy-handed in one or two instances, but for the most part the director sublimates rhetoric to character. Forgoing a traditional dramatic arc, Anders structures her film into three separate vignettes, each of which breaks down into even smaller narrative units as the voice-over shifts from one character to the next. This allows the director to replay the same events from different perspectives, resulting in a film that's rich in nuance. It's hard to define "principals" in a cast this huge, but the meatiest roles go to a mixture of newcomers and pros. Angel Aviles is sweet and tough as the quietly intense Sad Girl, while Seidy Lopez displays great comic timing as the testy Mousie; it's a shame that neither actress has more than a handful of feature credits to her name. Nelida Lopez, Magali Alvarado, and Marlo Marron also went MIA after their fine performances here, although the talented Jacob Vargas, who was also featured in Anders' Gas Food Lodging, has been working steadily since he was a kid. Mi Vida Loca has been criticized for putting Latina actresses into stereotypical "spitfire" parts, but it remains one of the only American movies so far to furnish a rich diversity of roles for that specific ethnicity and gender. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
Cast
Angel Aviles - Sad Girl
Seidy Lopez - Mousie
Jacob Vargas - Ernesto
Jesse Borrego - El Duran; Magali Alvarado - La Blue Eyes; Julian Reyes - Big Sleepy; Bertila Damas - Rachel; Salma Hayek - Gata; Panchito Gomez - Joker Bird; Tiffany Anders - Teenage Drug Customer; Guy Boyd - Priest; Sissy Boyd - Tia Elena; Jonathan Chapin - Policeman; Leigh Hamilton - Social Worker; Marabina Jaimes - Elva Rivero Player; Carlos Rivas - Sad Girl's Dad; Ricardo Salinas - Efren; Danny Trejo - Frank; Noah Verduzco - Chuco; Susan Bertram - Trendy Girl; Marcus de Leon - Policeman; Gabriel Gonzalez - Sleepy; David Hidalgo - Los Lobo; Kurt Voss - Policeman; Abbe Wool - Warden; Nicole Holofcener - Warden; Jason Lee - Teenage Drug Customer; Spike Jonze - Teenage Drug Customer; Christina Solis - Baby Doll; Nelida Lopez - Whisper; Marlo Marron - Giggles; Maurice Benard - Creeper
Credit
William Ewart - Co-producer, Susan Bertram - Costume Designer, Matthew J. Clark - First Assistant Director, Allison Anders - Director, Tracy S. Granger - Editor, Kathryn Himoff - Editor, Colin Callender - Executive Producer, Christoph Henkel - Executive Producer, John Taylor - Composer (Music Score), Rodrigo García - Cinematographer, Carl Colpaert - Producer, Daniel Hassid - Producer, Allison Anders - Screenwriter
