Main Cast: Marisa Tomei, Alfred Molina, Anjelica Huston, Chazz Palminteri, Trini Alvarado
Release Year: 1995
Country: US
Run Time: 112 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Old and new loves are turned upside down through a complex case of mistaken identities in this romantic comedy-drama. In 1980, Juan Raul Perez (Alfred Molina) is released from a Cuban prison after spending 20 years behind bars and is allowed to join a mass emigration to the U.S. While Juan was incarcerated, his wife Carmela Perez (Anjelica Huston) escaped to Florida with their daughter, and Juan lives for the day when they can be reunited. En route to Miami, Juan meets Dottie Perez (Marisa Tomei), a fiery young woman who wants to leave behind her career as a prostitute. Juan and Carmela miss finding each other when his boat reaches Miami, and immigration personnel mistakenly assume that Juan and Dottie Perez are husband and wife; when they learn that families tend to find American sponsors much faster than individuals, they play along with the mistake, even convincing other Perezes to pose as their child and grandfather. Juan discovers that trying to renew an old relationship isn't easy as one tries to start a new life, especially since Carmela has attracted the attentions of police lieutenant John Pirelli (Chazz Palminteri). Cuban jazz legend Arturo Sandoval contributed to the soundtrack. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
Although its heart is in the right place, this comic drama from director Mira Nair proves, at best, an uneven pleasure. Marisa Tomei overplays, Anjelica Huston underplays, and Alfred Molina is left to carry the picture with his grave eyes and Job-like perseverance. One could pause to reflect that none of these actors is actually Cuban, but a bigger problem is the wildly fluctuating tone. From broad comedy to grown-up restraint to overwrought melodrama, the picture shifts gears so often that the audience may get lost. That said, Robin Swicord's script touches on some powerful ideas about the tension between sustained longing for the past and renewed hope for the future. It also explores the experience of modern immigrants with complementary humor and insight. Rather than dragging such themes kicking and screaming to the top of her agenda, Nair allows them to speak quietly and eloquently for themselves. Along the way, she provides plenty of the lushly beautiful images for which she's known. Neither flawless nor execrable, The Perez Family is simply watchable. But it's perhaps best viewed as a rough draft of Monsoon Wedding, the director's similarly themed 2001 masterpiece. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
Celia Cruz - Luz Pat; Sarita Choudhury - Josette; Ranjit Chowdhry - Ranjit, Indian Immigration Official; Ellen Cleghorne - Officer Rhoades; Robert Escobar - Rivera; Mel Gorham - Vilma/Raquel; Salvadore Levy - Customer #2; Marc Macaulay - Male Volunteer; Max Maxwell - Gate Guard; Lazaro Perez - Armando "Papi" Perez; Ruben Rabasa - Father Martinez; Bill Sage - Steve Steverino; Luis Torres - Guajiro Drummer #1; Vincent Gallo - Orlando; Mira Nair - Woman Buying Flowers; Antoni Corone - Security; Angeles Gonzalez - Guajiro Drummer; Billy Hopkins - Father Aiden; Diego Wallraff - Angel Diaz; Roberto Escobar - Rivera; Angela Lanza - Flavia; Gustavo Laborie - Cuban Official; Luis Raul - News Photographer; Melissa Ramone - Young Carmela; Ana Carballosa - Woman of Many Faces; José Felipe Padron - Felipe Perez; Melissa Anne Acosta - Isabel; Magaly Aguelo - Angel's Secretary; Paloma Delaijrentil - Transvestite on Boat; Bernard Fouquet - Customer; Oscar Gonzalez - Old Guajiro; Sandor Juan - Vendor; Jorge Luis Ramone - Cuban Prison Guard; Glenda Diaz Rigau - Giovanna; Florencio Santana - Old Guajiro
Credit
Ken Hardy - Art Director, Kerry Barden - Casting, Billy Hopkins - Casting, Suzanne Smith - Casting, Ellen Jacoby - Casting, Jose Maria Calleja - Casting, Laura Ekstrand - Casting, Dinaz Stafford - Casting, Jennifer Low Sauer - Casting, Ana Carballosa - Consultant/advisor, Eduardo Castro - Costume Designer, Michael J. Moore - First Assistant Director, Basti Van Der Woude - First Assistant Director, Mira Nair - Director, Robert L. Estrin - Editor, Julia Chasman - Executive Producer, Robin Swicord - Executive Producer, Cydney Cornell - Hair Styles, Caridad "Cuqui" Collazo - Hair Styles, Enelda Nunez - Location Manager, Fabio M. Arber - Location Manager, Zbigniew Preisner - Composer (Music Score), Alan Silvestri - Composer (Music Score), Arturo Sandoval - Composer (Music Score), Jellybean Benitez - Musical Direction/Supervision, Jellybean Benitez - Songwriter, Jay Cannistraci - Makeup, Hallie D'Amore - Makeup, Alan Silvestri - Makeup, Frank Miller - Camera Operator, Mark Friedberg - Production Designer, Stuart Dryburgh - Cinematographer, Elyse Katz - Production Manager, Nannette Rosa-Collazo - Production Manager, Michael Nozik - Producer, Lydia Dean Pilcher - Producer, Stephanie Carroll - Set Designer, Michael Delgado - Set Designer, Henri Lopez - Sound/Sound Designer, John Zimmerman - Stunts Coordinator, Ilene S. Landress - Unit Production Manager, Robin Swicord - Screenwriter, Eugene Gearty - Sound Effects Editor, Mary F. Jansen - Post Production Supervisor, Camille Spaccavento - Post Production Supervisor, Patrick M. Lynn - Production Coordinator, Roberto "Tito" Otera - Production Coordinator, Mark Lafata - Production Coordinator, Julia Gilbert - Production Coordinator, Skip Lievsay - Re-Recording Mixer, Michael Barry - Re-Recording Mixer, Betty Bennett - Script Supervisor, William Papp - Steadicam Operator, Merissa Littlefield - ADR Editor, Laureen Clarke - Assistant Production Coordinator, Linda Peirce - Costumes Supervisor, Robert Hein - Dialogue Editor, Fred Rosenberg - Dialogue Editor, Laurie Butler - First Assistant Editor, Nancy Cabrera - Foley Artist, Frank Kern - Foley Editor, Eliza Paley - Foley Editor, Steven Visscher - Foley Editor, Jose Duarte - Scenic Artist, Daniel Duarte - Scenic Artist, William Forte - Scenic Artist, Pablo Miranda - Scenic Artist, Richard E. Kruder - Set Dresser, Alison Troy - Set Production Assistant, Bruce Pross - Foley Supervisor, Jose Maldonado - Pilot
The Perez Family is a comedy film released in 1995, about a group of Cuban refugees in America, who pretend to be a family. It starred Marisa Tomei, Alfred Molina, Anjelica Huston, Chazz Palminteri, and other well known actors. It was based on the 1991 novel The Perez Family (ISBN 0-06-097401-X) by Christine Bell. The film was directed by Mira Nair.
The premise of the film was that, a group of unrelated people, who happened to share the last name "Perez", realized they could more easily stay in America if they pretended to be family. Set in 1980 during the Mariel boatlift, the movie shows Juan Raúl Perez (Alfred Molina), a former aristocrat and newly released political prisoner, seeking to return to his wife, now in America, after 20 years. Dottie Perez (Marisa Tomei) is a former prostitute, who Juan meets. U.S. Immigration officials assume the two are married, because of the common last name. The potential for a real romantic relationship between the couple sets the basis for much of the rest of the film.
Jama Masjid Street Journal (1979) • So Far from India (1982) • India Cabaret (1985) • Children of a Desired Sex (1987) • The Day the Mercedes Became a Hat (1993) • My Own Country (1998) • The Laughing Club of India (1999)
Productions
Still, the Children Are Here (2004) • Blood Brothers (2007)
