Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to make the bed! Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the gothic horror of “Frankenstein,” the musical drama “Kiss of the Spider Woman” and the supernatural comedy “Good Fortune.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” a new musical fantasy starring Diego Luna, Tonatiuh and Jennifer Lopez, and now playing in theatres, sees incarcerated window dresser Molina (Tonatiuh) befriend his cellmate, the leftist political activist Valentin (Luna), with a grand retelling of the Technicolor musicals starring his favorite screen diva, Aurora (Jennifer Lopez).
CAST: Diego Luna, Tonatiuh, Jennifer Lopez. Directed by Bill Condon.
REVIEW: A mix of gritty prison drama and lush Hollywood musical, “Kiss of the Spider Woman” is a testament to the power of imagination as a powerful antidote to oppression and suffering.
Set in an Argentine prison during the 1980s Dirty War, a time of state terrorism that saw political dissidents and socialists jailed or murdered, “Kiss of the Spider Woman” is the story of two cellmates, Molina (Tonatiuh), a queer window dresser imprisoned on a trumped up charge of indecency and Marxist revolutionary Valentín (Diego Luna) who is as stoic as his new roomie is impassioned.
To pass the time and distract from the grimness of their situation, Molina vividly recounts the movies of his favorite star, the glamorous Aurora (Jennifer Lopez) a.k.a. the Spider Woman.
An intimate story set against the inhumane horrors of the Dirty War, this is a story of identity, loyalty and sacrifice that works best when it focusses on the inner lives and evolving connection between the two leads.
Like Technicolor dreams, Molina’s stories are surreal, but the seductive Spider Woman’s songs are more than simple escapism. They momentarily transport the duo to another place but in their staging, they comment on the evolving relationship between the two men. The tunes forward the movie’s themes of identity, dignity and sacrifice and add a dollop of unexpected glamour.
Lopez wows in the fantasy segments, but it’s Tonatiuh who steals the show. He hands in a career making performance as a gay man whose flamboyance in Argentina’s repressed society of the time feels is an act of rebellion. It’s emotionally charged, often heartbreaking work that provides the film’s heart.
“Kiss of the Spider Woman” has three compelling leads but is let down by songs that are thematically appropriate and visually beautiful but musically don’t make leave of an impression. Still, as a portrait of connection in adversity, it succeeds.
