Customer Reviews

Amores Perros (BFI Modern Classics)

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Director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu and screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga are probably better known in the United States for their collaberations on the emotionally powerful 21 Grams and the more tepid Babel. Yet it was Amores Perros, made in their native Mexico City, that put them on the movie map. The Mexican film world was actually in the slumps when Amores Perros came around and it is noteworthy, as the author explains, that the movie was made outside of the normal and established avenues for Mexican film makers.

This monograph by the British Film Institute explores several aspects of the movie and the context of Mexican cinema in which it came about. Amores Perros is an ambitious picture and the behind the scenes story of making it on the low budget available is interesting in and of itself.

Like 21 Grams and Babel, Amores Perros is one movie involving several stories that become interwoven with each other through a single event. The author of this book, Paul Julian Smith, analyzes the various stories and digs below the surface to explore similarities among the characters who, on the surface, seem as different as can be. The themes of missing fathers, brotherly betrayal and the relationships people have with animals come up frequently. Inarritu's complex soundtrack is explored as are such issues as film quality and sound in order to demonstrate the 'differentness' yet similarities of the three stories the film follows.

The concept of mexicanidad (Mexican-ness) is also frequently brought to the surface in Smith's review of the movie. A good movie, however, transcends the geographical boundaries in which it is made and where it is set. Amores Perros meets that standard and this BFI book is a good accompaniment for someone wanting a better understanding of the movie.