Customer Reviews

Arrancame La Vida (Tear This Heart Out) [NTSC/REGION 1 & 4 DVD. Import-Latin America]

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a magnificent film, based on the novel by Angeles Mastretta. Superb acting and photography. Captures a period of Mexico's history brilliantly and deals with universal themes. A must-see.

This is probably the most ambitious and bold Mexican film of the decade. Supported by a well rounded script, deals with the in and outs of a very unconventional girl who learns to make audacious decisions in order to obtain love, security and comfort at the moment to meet an ambitious and ruthless General. But, as the time goes by she is aware she was wrong and that besides he wrongly played the pieces of her emotional universe.

Ana Claudia Talascon dazzles with her naturalness and magnetism. Daniel Gimenez Cacho as the macho man is overwhelming too. Jose Maria Tavira as the young rival makes a convincing performance.

A remarkable gem of the Mexican cinematography.

Angela Mastretta's novel has been brought to the screen in this truly excellent film. The title comes from a song popular in the 30s or 40s. In fact, throughout the book and the movie,songs of the period, in recordings by artists who first made them popular, reflect the heroine's growth. I highly recommend this film and, to those who read Spanish, the novel of the same title.

The Video was of good quality. the Movie was great. Although, it did not have English subtitles.

What a great movie, this is a must buy, one of the great mexican movies ive seen. Military commander in his quest to become President of Mexico, along the way he Marries a young girl, she has kids and more. I wont spoil it, you have to watch this movie.....

Great film all the way. Has the feeling of The Godfather in scope and reach. Acting is superb, Music is fantastic, story-captivating and perfectly suited for todays tabloids in America. Great ending and of course the locale and time period makes it impossible to turn away from watching the TV. This movie is in Spanish with English subtitles unavailable. You must understand Spanish to watch. Lets hope Hollywodd doesnt get ahold of this one and ruin it. Tom Cruise as the General-Oh no please!!!!! Tear This Heart Out is a magnificent film.

Mexican director Roberto Sneider wrote the script of "Tear This Heart Out" ("Arráncame la Vida") with the author and winner of the Mazatlán Prize for Literature for the best book of the year Ángeles Mastretta published in Mexico in 1985 partially inspired by the life of Maximino Ávila Camacho, a four-star general in Mexico's revolutionary forces, brother of Manuel Ávila Camacho who was President of Mexico from 1940 to 1946...

The film opens with the beautiful Catalina Guzmán (Ana Claudia Talancón) marrying at her early age a charismatic and cunning general named Andrés Ascencio (Daniel Giménez Cacho), much older than her... Dazzled by his world, Catalina escorts him on his political campaigns, perceiving at his side the intriguing political systems to obtain social justice...

Catalina, a smart but not an educated young woman, dedicates years of her youth to a 'loving' husband... She comes to Puebla to hear from the voice of her man, the governor of the beautiful city, that soon she will be the First Lady of Mexico as he considers himself the best-qualified candidate to win the race for the Presidency...

But one day, Catalina finds out that her arrogant and prepotent macho man is cheating on her with several women and has several children out of that relationship... But in spite of all that, and observing her husband's pervert and bad manners, Catalina continues to live with Andrés, to bear his two children, to train his others children in her family, to serve him as his adviser and to guide him to win elections, taking intense pleasure from that attitude... Nevertheless she learns that life and power are not always so pink...

There is a scene during her pregnancy, where we saw her detecting that she is totally neglected... So, for the first time we watch her taking pleasure in having a love affair with a teenager who cherished her dearly...

But the movie takes a dramatic turn when Catalina falls really in love with a concertmaster... And it was forbidden for her to fall in love! And she executes her cruel vengeance on Andrés sharing the musician' bed ignoring the predestined course of his future fate...

And here Roberto Sneider's motion picture clearly comes off with three significant national old traditions: the 1930's post-revolutionary Mexico, the very crucial point for the Mexican girl, the "rite of passage," and the traditional macho man...

The film is a love story through which three main characters are important for the viewer: Andrés, the charming officer, the great orator with the voice so thrilling and so impacting... His wife Catalina divulging how meaningless and insincere his promises are... And Carlos (Jose María de Tavira), the leader of the orchestra, the future of a new Mexico, the rebel, and what Mexico is expecting from her younger men...

The motion picture presents the concept of the long-suffering Mexican woman vanishing here with Catalina as seen powerful of character, efficacious and extreme in having an affair with the man she deeply falls in love, intense in degree to accept whatever she is asked from her lover to carry out...

Her representation of the submissive wife, in a macho world where women are suppressed and their voices not heard, has fallen with her determined and ambivalent character here, as near Carlos, Catalina is another woman who wishes, requests, and desires intensely the enjoyment of her personal liberty and personal efficacy...

The result is a fine rich movie with many captivating visuals of the stunning state of Puebla, and definitely a must-see, at least for the Mexican viewers...

Much better than I thought it would be! The acting was pretty good. It might be a little too sexy, but it didn't bother me nor my wife. Amazon is our choice.

In spite this and the other dvd's I purchased in February were programed by you to arrive latest on March 28th, up to now I am still waiting for them.

Arrancame la Vida (Tear this Heart Out)(Tear This Heart Out) DVD + CD Soundtrack [NTSC/REGION 1 & 4 DVD. Import-Latin America] MexicoArrancame La Vida (Tear This Heart Out) [*Ntsc/region 4 Dvd. Import-latin America] Mexico