Under the Same Moon

Under the Same Moon_720p(480P)

Greetings again from the darkness. Charming, touching story of a very lively 9 yr old Mexican boy who goes on an interesting road trip in search of his mother who sneaked across the border four years earlier with the dream of providing a better life for her son. Kate del Castillo is terrific as Rosario, the boy's mother. Hard working and determined to bring her boy to the U.S., she fights the constant emotional battle of whether they might both be better off together. Wide-eyed Adrian Alonso plays Carlitos, the courageous and equally determined little man. Many will remember Alonso from "The Legend of Zorro". He brings much more depth to this role and displays a certain quality that just forces us to pull for him. As good as those two performances are, they aren't the film's best. That belongs to Eugenio Derbey as Enrique, the reluctant hero. He is just tremendous as we see Carlitos soften up his crusty exterior and even teach him a few lessons along the way. Just a fun performance to watch. Director Patricia Riggen kind of skirts the immigration issue with a weak border crossing featuring a brief performance from America Ferrera. This part just never felt real. Still, that doesn't reduce the entertainment value of this charming story ... and neither does the fact that we know very early on how the story will end. As with any road trip, the fun part is in the travel.

"No I would not give you false hope On this strange and mournful day But the mother and child reunion Is only a motion away." Paul Simon (1972) Having just reviewed Nim's Island, where an 11 year-old girl lives with dad without mom, I now am reviewing Under the Same Moon, where 9-year-old Carlitos (Adrian Alonso) lives in Mexico without his mother, Rosario (Kate del Castillo), I began thinking about all the comedy/dramas featuring kids without parents (another, 21, is about a widowed professor with 2 motherless kids) I have seen recently. Such is our time of dislocation and divorce. Under the Same Moon is a sweet tale of Mexican challenges with immigration laws, border crossings, and exploitation. Its strength is the soft way it treats these divisive topics as it concentrates on the love of a mother and child, transcending all other issues, dedicated to a reunion at all costs. Along the way, the attractive Rosario must decide if she will marry to facilitate US citizenship or wait for love. The possibility of both is dangled, part of the ongoing optimism of a film that could be tragic in every respect. Although there is no new ground here, norteno band Los Tigres del Norte provides light lyrics and mariachi-like music just at the right heavy-handed moment. That is to say, this plot is rife with clichés and fulfilled dramatic expectations—abuse on one side, kindness on the other—but plays to a universally accepted tenderness about the bond between a mother and child and the dangers border-crossing aliens experience every day. It may be the realistic performances that moved me or the liberal leaning side of me that likes a mother-and-child reunion—I do know I was moved, and that's what good film-making does.

Sensitive director Patricia Riggen has, in LA MISMA LUNA (UNDER THE SAME MOON), succeeded in creating a story about the travails of the illegal immigrants from Mexico that serves as a reminder to all of us that one of the reasons for the obsession to take the risks of crossing the border is an attempt to find a better life. While this story concept is by no means a novel one, writer Ligiah Villalobos has provided a script that avoids taking sides, but instead concentrates on creating wholly believable characters caught in the web of immigration - from both sides of the wall. This little film from Mexico is, above all, a film about love, about courage and about resilience and is portrayed by a very fine cast in every role. Rosario (Kate del Castillo) is a single mother who crossed the border four years earlier in order to support her young son Carlitos (a superb young actor, Adrian Alonso) and her ailing mother by working double jobs as a housekeeper in Los Angeles. She keeps in touch with Carlitos with weekly phone calls and sends him gifts as well as money and love. When Rosario's mother dies, Carlitos takes life into his own hands and plans to cross the border with a little help from his experience with a wise old lady Coyota (Carmen Salinas) who aids immigrants. With his savings in his backpack and his heart aimed toward Los Angeles he sets out on his journey and is thwarted at every turn. He is picked up by two Hispanic students from the US (America Ferrara and Jesse Garcia) whose attempt to transport Carlitos is halted at the border - with the little Carlitos hidden under the seat of the now towed away car. Carlos escapes from the car in El Paso, meets up with some illegal workers who are arrested, leaving the hidden Carlitos with a reluctant companion Enrique (Eugenio Derbez) who is able to aid Carlitos (reluctantly!) to escape to Los Angeles. Through many 'jobs' and untoward situations Carlitos finally finds his way to the spot where he hopes he will meet his mother. The rhythms of the cinematography, the sets, the flavors of both sides of the border, and the music that accompanies the film all contribute to making this story real and believable - and VERY touching. While Kate del Castillo is the major star of the film, it is the performance by Adrian Alonso that remains in the mind long after the credits are shown. Some viewers may find this film a bit too 'novella-like', but the magic that Patricia Riggen pulls from her large cast and verismo directing style will touch the hearts of most everyone. A fine little reminder of the other aspects of the Immigration topic! Grady Harp

I enjoyed the story, it is a really original idea, and there were a lot of good scenes, I think the direction was good too (not excellent but good) but it was the actuation what let me down, down, so down on this movie. The kid is so annoying and I hated his false voice tone. Kate Del Castillo was so ridiculous, I couldn't believe her anything, Derbez has that comic aura that it is not possible to believe a drama scene of his. And worst of all, CARMEN SALINAS, WHY? WHY? WHY LORD???? That woman is a living cliché. So, watch it if you don't have a lot to see, with low expectedness, cause you're not going to get more than that.

source: Under the Same Moon

Kate del Castillo is Rosario, a Mexican in the USA illegally, working two jobs as a maid, one job in the morning, another in the afternoon, to send money home. She had been there several years, while her young son was still in Mexico with his grandmother. She hopes to get citizenship soon. The son is played wonderfully by Adrian Alonso as Carlitos. (Remember him from the second Zorro movie, as Zorro's young son.) He isn't happy to be away from his mother and when she calls him at 10AM each Sunday morning, at the designated pay phone, and he asks when he will see her again. When grandma unexpectedly dies, Carlitos' situation changes. Unable to reach his mother, family members took care of the burial and Carlitos decided he would go to Los Angeles to find mom, bringing along the return address from one of her letters. That is an adventure in itself, finding a way to be smuggled over the border, finding a ride to L.A., then finding that the address was a box and not a residence. The key to his finding her was the description she always gave him over the phone, describing what she saw from her phone booth. The movie contains many cliché statements, but overall it is a good story about a young boy finding his mother. The title comes from her telling Carlitos that at night when he is lonesome, look at the moon and know that mom was looking at the same moon too.

A hit at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, first time director Patricia Riggen's Under The Same Moon or La Misma Luna (in Spanish) is that rare film that's about real people dealing with life's issues that resonate in today's hectic and cruel world. The drama centers on a little Mexican boy, Carlitos (Adrian Alonso), who lives with his ailing guelita (grandmother) in Mexico; when she suddenly dies in her sleep, he sets off to Los Angeles to be reunited with his mother, who's been working as a maid for rich folks. His plan to make the journey across the US/Mexico border doesn't pan out as easily as he had planned, running into stumbling blocks that involve street thugs, migrant workers, a heroin addict, near kidnapping and the INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service). Under The Same moon is a fantastic little Mexican-American film that subtlety transcends the hot topic of illegal immigration. But it's the story of Carlitos and his mother Rosario (Kate del Castillo) that makes this film a definite must see. Child actor Adrian Alonso stands out and basically carries the film, as he gives such a compelling and truthful performance; it's one of those young performances of recent years that will be remembered. Kate del Castillo, as well, exudes that motherly instinct in her tired, stressed-out expressions with such sadness, one can only feel for her. Eugenio Derbez adds some comic flair as the stranger that ends up helping Carlitos to find his mother. At first, he wants nothing to do with him as he, too, is in the states illegally, but then becomes a father figure, realizing the chiquito needs all the help he can get. Ugly Betty's America Ferrera, in a brief role, is good as one who smuggles Mexicans into the U.S. in order to pay for her college tuition. No matter what you think about illegal immigration, Under The Same Moon is a terrific movie about hope, love, survival and the yearning for family, no matter what the consequences. It also pulls at your heartstrings. It's a powerful little film that will move you and perhaps, bring you to tears. Note: Under The Same Moon will most likely be playing in major Metropolitan cities, so if you can find it, I highly recommend this movie.

Patricia Riggen's "Under The Same Moon" feels like a fairy tale because it eschews reality in favor of neat drama. A Mexican boy slips out of Mexico to be with his mother in Los Angeles; the film depicts his adventures on the lam. The boy, played by Eugenio Derbez, is natural and believable, never pushing his performance too hard. Kate del Castillo, who plays the boy's mother, draws us into her plight with subtle focus. The script feels a little too calculated at times and glosses over a sequence involving a border crossing. It is a strong character piece that explores the the price of sacrificing one thing for another. Coincidence plays a major role in the unfolding of the drama, but it never becomes too cloying. Aspects of the journey that involve the impoundment of a vehicle, the employment of a minor (!), and a brutal raid on an illegal workplace, come across more as fanciful than real. Still, this is an interesting angle on the immigrant experience.

Under the Same Moon is a horrible, horrible movie. I was in agony watching it. It's so boring, so sentimental, so shamelessly one dimensional in it's portrayal of the heroic immigrant child and his mother, separated by those darn awful white people who hate foreigners. Whatever political stance you take on illegal-immigration, whatever side you lean towards, you can't deny that this film takes a complex, multi-faceted problem and trivializes it, turning it into a simple battle of good versus evil. Not only does it attack it's subject matter without an ounce of nuance, but it is also a horribly made film. You don't get a sense of the director at all, it's just so bland and generic. Sometimes that's okay with me when the story is gripping on it's own but... whoo, wee! This film could have used some style! The characters are as horrible as everything else in the film. They don't feel real in the slightest. Both Carlitos and Rosario are one dimensional victims who were supposed to cheer on, right up to the unspeakably awful ending where they see each other across the street and were supposed to feel all emotional because finally they've found each other. Honestly, I just wanted them both to get hit by a bus or something. Rosario and Carlitos are terrible characters, but they're not the worst in the film. The worst, most god-awful garbage character is Enrique, the classic "lone wolf" type character. He's brooding and sulky and doesn't want to help Carlitos but big surprise he ends up sacrificing himself so the kid can escape. Wow, I've never seen that in a movie before! So, in conclusion, if you like your movies hyper politically-correct, un-nuanced, terribly acted, directed, written and shot, then I would recommend this trash to you.