SPANGLISH

As the title suggests, something about it just doesn't translate.

I really wanted to like Spanglish, and I know my unemployed friend (who spent her last dime on our pre-Christmas outing) wanted to like it too. Having watched As Good As It Gets about fifty times, we figured we could trust James L. Brooks. Throw in Adam Sandler, and you've got it made, right? Not so much. The truth is, Spanglish isn't particularly bad or good—it's just odd. As the title suggests, something about it just doesn't translate.

I once wrote a story for a creative writing seminar that was told from the third person limited point of view... up until the point where I started exploring the thoughts of another character. It's one of those stupid things you don't always catch in the first draft, so I was happy when the majority of the class pointed out my blunder. Sadly, Spanglish suffers the same affliction, but apparently no one was kind enough to mention it before it was released in theaters across the country. The film is more or less narrated by the daughter of our protagonist through a college application letter that frames the story. I'm sure the students of English 284 would concur that this makes the point of view third person limited, yet most of the movie focuses on things that happened when the daughter wasn't even there. You could argue that her mother eventually told her the details, but still more of the film concerns stuff that happened when neither of them were there. What the hell?

Flor (Paz Vega) is a beautiful Mexican woman who brings her daughter Cristina (Shelbie Bruce) to California for a better life. She winds up working as a housekeeper for Deborah (Tea Leoni) and John (Adam Sandler) Clasky. They can't figure out why Flor hasn't learned English, but don't bother to learn any Spanish—grr! When Flor brings Cristina to live with the Claskys for the summer, she finds herself losing ground. Deborah gloms onto Flor's daughter (who she views as more perfect than her own) and begins to offer her opportunities that Flor cannot. It seems to Cristina that the Claskys have it all, but Flor sees that they haven't got a clue. She finds herself in the awkward situation of relying on the Claskys and resenting them. This is made all the more difficult by the language barrier.

Paz Vega offers a compelling performance full of emotional complexity. Flor is a strong, wise, and insightful character who fully deserves to carry the story, but she is sidelined by her inability to speak English. It seems like someone is always speaking for her, and it's frustrating to see the heroine drowned out by the supporting players.

It might have been an interesting plot device to have the quiet one emerge as the most important character, but this never really happens in Spanglish.

Deborah is an utterly overwhelming force, who manhandles everyone to compensate for her own confusion and insecurity. John is a sympathetic character struggling to deal with his wife's neuroses and the damage she's doing to their children with her demands for perfection. Sandler loses himself completely in the character, leaving his usual Happy Gilmore persona far behind. The trouble is, this story makes you long for one of Adam's classic performances. As Alec Baldwin once pleaded so poignantly on SNL, "make me laugh again, Canteen Boy".

Cloris Leachman is also brilliant as Deborah's alcoholic mother, but falls victim to peculiar dialogue. Consider the moment when she tells Deborah, "Right now your low self-esteem is just common sense!" Um, yeah. I get it, but like much of the script, it doesn't really resonate. Even so, Leachman stands out as one of the best parts of this movie.

The trouble is that the Claskys are far too interesting for their own good. We become entrenched in their lives and invested in their problems, only to find out that it's not about them. To movie-goers everywhere, I offer this one tidbit of advice: Keep your eye on the ball. Her name is Flor.