Raising Victor Vargas

Raising Victor Vargas
File:Raising Victor Vargas.jpg
Directed by	Peter Sollett
Produced by	Peter Sollett Robin O'Hara Scott Macaulay Alain de la Mata
Written by	Peter Sollett Eva Vives
Starring	Victor Rasuk Judy Marte Melonie Diaz Silvestre Rasuk Kevin Rivera Altagracia Guzman Krystal Rodriguez
Music by	Brad Jones Roy Nathanson
Cinematography	Tim Orr
Edited by	Myron I. Kerstein
Distributed by	Samuel Goldwyn Films Fireworks
Release dates	May 16, 2002 (2002-05-16) (Cannes Film Festival) March 28, 2003 (2003-03-28)
Running time	88 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$800,000
Box office	2.9 million

Raising Victor Vargas is a 2002 American comedy-drama film directed by Peter Sollett, written by Sollett and Eva Vives. The film follows Victor, a Lower East Side teenager, as he deals with his eccentric family, including his strict grandmother, his bratty sister, and a younger brother who completely idolizes him. Along the way he tries to win the affections of Judy, who is very careful and calculating when it comes to how she deals with men. In a subplot, Judy's friend Melonie is depicted in her own romantic adventure. The film was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival.

Plot

Victor is a teenager growing up in the Lower East Side of New York. He is a cocky young man, very sure of himself in his love life. He lives in a small apartment with his strict grandmother, bratty sister Vicki, and his younger brother Nino, who is just coming into his own sexuality and looks up to his girl-crazy brother highly.

At the beginning of the film, Victor is found in the bedroom of Fat Donna, a girl that many in the neighborhood consider overweight. Word quickly spreads throughout the community amongst his friends, although Victor continuously denies it happened. As this is a huge threat to his reputation, he sets his sights on the beautiful girl of the neighborhood, Judy.

Judy is a good-looking young woman who is continuously hit-on by men in her neighborhood, which makes her very careful in who she chooses in terms of her love life. When Victor comes on to her, she lies, telling him she has a boyfriend. When Victor finds out this isn't true, he enlists the help of Judy's little brother Carlos, on the condition that Victor introduce him to Vicki, whom he has a crush on. Judy ultimately says yes to Victor's advances, believing he will serve as a repellent toward the many men that hit on her.

During this time, Carlos has a crush on Vicki. We also see Judy's friend Melonie and her romantic dealings with Harold, Victor's friend. Their romance ultimately results in their sleeping together, and Melonie reveals to Harold the real reasons why Judy agreed to go out with Victor. Harold tells Victor, who goes to confront Judy. When Victor invites her over to dinner at his house, she believes he's doing so to impress his family and better his reputation. Ultimately, they decide to stay together, with Victor saying that he invited her to see his family to see who he really is.

Production

The film was adapted from Sollett's 2000 autobiographical short film Five Feet High and Rising. Shooting took place on location in the Lower East Side, where spacing concerns necessitated the use of 16mm film cameras.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 96% rating based on 103 reviews, and an average rating of 8/10. The site's consensus reads, "A coming-of-age tale marked by its authenticity." On Metacritic, the film holds a score of 83%, based on 31 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Roger Ebert praised the film for its actors and the relationship between the film's main characters, writing that the film "tells the heartwarming story of first love that finds a balance between lust and idealism. Acted by fresh-faced newcomers who never step wrong, it sidesteps the cliches of teenage coming-of-age movies and expands into truth and human comedy. It's the kind of movie you know you can trust, and you give yourself over to affection for these characters who are so lovingly observed."

External links

• Official website
• Raising Victor Vargas at IMDb