SCREEN IT! PARENTAL REVIEW: SPANGLISH

"SPANGLISH"
(2004) (Adam Sandler, Téa Leoni) (PG-13)

Alcohol/ Drugs	Blood/Gore	Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude	Frightening/ Tense Scenes	Guns/ Weapons
Heavy	Minor	Heavy	None	None

Imitative Behavior	Jump Scenes	Music (Scary/Tense)	Music (Inappropriate)	Profanity
Mild	None	None	None	Heavy

Sex/ Nudity	Smoking	Tense Family Scenes	Topics To Talk About	Violence
Heavy	None	Heavy	Moderate	Minor

QUICK TAKE:: Dramedy: A Mexican immigrant tries to keep her young daughter on the straight and narrow when they move in to work for a rich but dysfunctional family that's run by the bipolar mother who's driving everyone crazy.

PLOT:

Flor (PAZ VEGA) is a single Mexican mother who's trying to raise her daughter, Cristina (SHELBIE BRUCE), as best as she can. Accordingly, she decides to immigrate to the U.S., but when she realizes that her two full-time jobs are compromising her efforts as a parent, Flor goes with her cousin Monica (CECILIA SUAREZ) for a job interview with Deborah Clasky (TÉA LEONI), a high-strung, former corporate woman who's been downsized to a stay-at-home mom.

Despite not speaking a word of English, Flor gets the job that includes taking care of Deborah's kids, Bernice (SARAH STEELE) and Georgie (IAN HYLAND). She also observes that Deborah's marriage to successful chef and restaurant owner John (ADAM SANDLER) is anything but ideal, a point that Deborah's alcoholic, live-in mother, Evelyn (CLORIS LEACHMAN), is quick to point out among her daughter's other faults.

Flor tries to do her job and keep to herself, but she's drawn further into the family's dysfunctional ways when Deborah insists that Flor and her daughter come and live with their family in their Malibu summer home. Flor reluctantly agrees and begins to learn English, but becomes uncomfortable by the way that Deborah has taken to Cristina as the favorite perfect daughter she never had. As that situation worsens along with Deborah and John's marriage, Flor must then figure out what's best for her and her daughter.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: Unless they're fans of anyone in the cast, it doesn't seem too likely that this release will be at the top of their "must see" list.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13: For some sexual content and brief language.

CAST AS ROLE MODELS:: ADAM SANDLER plays a highly successful restaurant owner/chef who ends up falling for Flor after his already strained marriage to Deborah gets worse. He drinks (and is drunk in one scene) and uses some profanity (including the "f" word), but tries to be a good dad.
TÉA LEONI plays his high-strung wife, a former career woman and now stay-at-home-mom who suffers from low self-esteem, favors Cristina over Bernice as her daughter and admits to having had an affair.
SARAH STEELE plays their daughter, a girl who must put up with her mother's constant nagging about her weight.
CLORIS LEACHMAN plays Deborah's live-in, alcoholic mother who eventually gives up the booze and tries to help her daughter through her crisis.
PAZ VEGA plays a single Mexican mother who wants the best for her daughter and so illegally immigrates to the U.S. where she gets a housekeeping job for Deborah despite not speaking English. She eventually learns the language, but becomes upset with Deborah regarding her overt attention to Cristina. She briefly makes out with John but realizes nothing can come of their attraction to each other.
SHELBIE BRUCE plays her daughter who enjoys the attention she gets from Deborah as well as all of the trappings of living in an affluent, white American world.; TÉA LEONI plays his high-strung wife, a former career woman and now stay-at-home-mom who suffers from low self-esteem, favors Cristina over Bernice as her daughter and admits to having had an affair.
SARAH STEELE plays their daughter, a girl who must put up with her mother's constant nagging about her weight.
CLORIS LEACHMAN plays Deborah's live-in, alcoholic mother who eventually gives up the booze and tries to help her daughter through her crisis.
PAZ VEGA plays a single Mexican mother who wants the best for her daughter and so illegally immigrates to the U.S. where she gets a housekeeping job for Deborah despite not speaking English. She eventually learns the language, but becomes upset with Deborah regarding her overt attention to Cristina. She briefly makes out with John but realizes nothing can come of their attraction to each other.
SHELBIE BRUCE plays her daughter who enjoys the attention she gets from Deborah as well as all of the trappings of living in an affluent, white American world.; SARAH STEELE plays their daughter, a girl who must put up with her mother's constant nagging about her weight.
CLORIS LEACHMAN plays Deborah's live-in, alcoholic mother who eventually gives up the booze and tries to help her daughter through her crisis.
PAZ VEGA plays a single Mexican mother who wants the best for her daughter and so illegally immigrates to the U.S. where she gets a housekeeping job for Deborah despite not speaking English. She eventually learns the language, but becomes upset with Deborah regarding her overt attention to Cristina. She briefly makes out with John but realizes nothing can come of their attraction to each other.
SHELBIE BRUCE plays her daughter who enjoys the attention she gets from Deborah as well as all of the trappings of living in an affluent, white American world.; CLORIS LEACHMAN plays Deborah's live-in, alcoholic mother who eventually gives up the booze and tries to help her daughter through her crisis.
PAZ VEGA plays a single Mexican mother who wants the best for her daughter and so illegally immigrates to the U.S. where she gets a housekeeping job for Deborah despite not speaking English. She eventually learns the language, but becomes upset with Deborah regarding her overt attention to Cristina. She briefly makes out with John but realizes nothing can come of their attraction to each other.
SHELBIE BRUCE plays her daughter who enjoys the attention she gets from Deborah as well as all of the trappings of living in an affluent, white American world.; PAZ VEGA plays a single Mexican mother who wants the best for her daughter and so illegally immigrates to the U.S. where she gets a housekeeping job for Deborah despite not speaking English. She eventually learns the language, but becomes upset with Deborah regarding her overt attention to Cristina. She briefly makes out with John but realizes nothing can come of their attraction to each other.
SHELBIE BRUCE plays her daughter who enjoys the attention she gets from Deborah as well as all of the trappings of living in an affluent, white American world.; SHELBIE BRUCE plays her daughter who enjoys the attention she gets from Deborah as well as all of the trappings of living in an affluent, white American world.

CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE

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(Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).

OUR WORD TO PARENTS:: Here's a brief summary of the content found in this dramedy that's been rated PG-13. Profanity consists of at least 1 "f" word, while other expletives and colorful phrases are uttered. Sexually related dialogue is present, while a woman in a sports bra and tight shorts grinds away on her husband's clothed crotch while striving for and attaining an orgasm (he earlier cups her breast beneath her robe). She later admits to having an affair, while various women show varying degrees of cleavage.
Various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes, while tense family material includes a strained marriage and various mother/daughter relationships. Some characters drink (one to the point of being drunk while another is noted as being an alcoholic), while a woman accidentally walks face-first into a sliding glass door and slightly bloodies her nose. Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content.

ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE: Evelyn has a martini.
Miscellaneous people have drinks at a restaurant where two strangers offer to buy a drink for Flor, but she turns them down (because she's there with her young daughter).
Evelyn pours a lot of wine for herself. Deborah then comments on her drinking before noon, but Evelyn smiles when the minute hand on the clock shows that it's now noon.
John has a beer.
Evelyn has wine.
John has vodka at work. Later, when he returns home, he's quite drunk, stumbles about and converses with Flor.
Evelyn has port, while John has a beer.
Deborah asks Evelyn if she's buzzed. Evelyn responds that she isn't, that she gave up alcohol weeks ago, and that since nobody seemed to notice, she figures she must have been functioning rather well while drunk.
John pours vodka for Flor and himself. After she says she won't have any, he pours hers into his. He doesn't drink his, but adds that if he had the equipment, he'd inject the vodka straight into his system.
Deborah tells Evelyn that she (Evelyn) was an alcoholic as well as a wildly promiscuous woman in Deborah's youth.

BLOOD/GORE: Monica accidentally runs face first into a sliding glass door (and slightly bloodies her nose, but is otherwise okay).

DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE: Flor and Cristina illegally immigrate to the U.S. by sneaking across the border.
Deborah has various bad attitudes for the way she treats people in her life. She argues a lot with John and then admits to having cheated on him; she keeps bringing up Bernice's weight issue (in various ways such as telling her she could do without fried food, and buying her clothes one size too small); and she treats Cristina better than Bernice, including taking the girl off on excursions without informing Flor.
Miscellaneous people have drinks at a restaurant where two strangers offer to buy a drink for Flor, but she turns them down (because she's there with her young daughter).
Some viewers might not like Cristina stating (in hindsight voice-over narration) that her mom thought that John seemed to behave like a Mexican woman (regarding him tearing up).
Deborah informs John, "I've been seeing another man for eleven weeks," but states that she just broke it off. John is shell-shocked but asks, "Have you slept with him?" and "Have you had sex with another person?" She eventually says that she has.
Despite his long-standing problems with Deborah, John nearly cheats on her with Flor.
Cristina is very upset with her mother when Flor announces that not only are they leaving the Clasky household, but that Cristina will no longer be attending a private school. The girl tells her mom that she (the mom) ruined everything and that she'll never forgive her (although it appears that she does).

FRIGHTENING SCENES: None.

GUNS/WEAPONS: None.

IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR: Phrases: "F*ck you," "Shut up," "What the hell /are you doing/is wrong?" "Frickin,'" "(Can drive you) Nuts" (crazy), "Sucker" and "Don't be a smart ass."
Flor and Cristina illegally immigrate to the U.S. by sneaking across the border.
We see that Deborah and Cristina went out and had strands of their hair dyed different colors (it's temporary).

JUMP SCENES: None.

MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE): None.

MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE): None.

PROFANITY: At least 1 "f" word (with another possible one and an incomplete use of another that purposefully stops short after the "mother" part), 2 "s" words (with 1 presumably in Spanish as translated), 6 damns, 3 asses (1 used with "hole"), 3 hells, 8 uses of "Oh my God," 3 of "For God's sakes," 2 of "Jesus" and 1 use each of "My God," "Oh God" and "Oh Jesus" as exclamations.

SEX/NUDITY: A boy dances with young Cristina and moves his hand down to her clothed butt (much to the shock of Flor who's watching them and other kids).
Flor shows some cleavage from time to time in her outfits, especially in one scene where she bends over and the camera sees down inside her dress.
We see Deborah's bare back as John puts a robe around her when she comes out of the shower. They talk for a bit and he then reaches his hand down inside her robe to cup her breast (from behind her). She's mad and asks if he thinks that's going to make the situation (them arguing) better, and he replies that in the past it did.
Cristina states (in voice-over narration) about Mexican and American women being quite similar in terms of lustfulness, sex, motherhood and other areas.
Proud of John's restaurant review, Deborah passionately kisses him, tears open his shirt, and then removes her own. She then jumps up and straddles his waist as he stands, wiggling her hips around. They then end up on the bed with her on top straddling him in her sports bra and small/tight jogging shorts (while he's fully clothed) and he pats her bare and taut belly. She then starts to writhe about and grind on top of him, with him saying "Go...go...You don't even need me, do you?" She shakes her head and continues to grind away on his crotch until she has an orgasm (played for comedy, but she then quickly becomes depressed and starts crying). She then sarcastically states, "Great sex."
Upon seeing Cristina for the first time, Deborah tells Flor that she could make a fortune at surrogate pregnancy.
Cristina passes by a miscellaneous couple making out while seated on the beach at night.
A miscellaneous women shows some cleavage.
John is flustered upon seeing Flor standing sideways in the wind where her covered bust is accentuated.
Deborah informs John, "I've been seeing another man for eleven weeks," but states that she just broke it off. John is shell-shocked but asks, "Have you slept with him?" and "Have you had sex with another person?" She eventually says that she has.
Deborah tells Evelyn that she (Evelyn) was an alcoholic as well as a wildly promiscuous woman in Deborah's youth.
John and Flor passionately kiss, but she stops them after a moment. He then states that he knows they can't do anything for satisfaction or release and she agrees. They do, however, continue to sit quite close together and we see that her dress strap is down off one shoulder.
Deborah thinks that John has had a retaliatory affair with Flor and wonders aloud about how he touched her, etc.

SMOKING: None.

TENSE FAMILY SCENES: We hear Cristina (in voice-over narration as a college applicant) state that her father left her and her mother back in Mexico. We then see a scene showing Flor crying about that. When young Cristina wants to cry, Flor tells her she gets just one tear so she should make it a good one.
Deborah yells at John about something regarding their son.
Bernice is upset with her mom when she purposefully buys her clothes that are one size too small (to try to make her lose weight).
Deborah is mad at John over a business decision he had to make.
Evelyn tells Deborah, "You're going to loose your husband."
Evelyn and Deborah have a bit of a strained mother/daughter relationship where the latter blames the former for all of her problems.
Deborah thinks that John has had a retaliatory affair with Flor and wonders aloud about how he touched her, etc.
Bernice tearfully greets John when he returns home, stating that she heard her mom crying and wondering aloud if he was going to come back home (and Bernice obviously then worried about that as well).
Cristina is very upset with her mother when Flor announces that not only are they leaving the Clasky household, but that Cristina will no longer be attending a private school. The girl tells her mom that she (the mom) ruined everything and that she'll never forgive her (although it appears that she does).

TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT: Language barriers between people.
The life of legal and illegal immigrants in the U.S.
Strained and/or dysfunctional marriages and families.
Flor and Cristina illegally immigrate to the U.S. by sneaking across the border.
Alcoholism.
Bernice is upset with her mom when she purposefully buys her clothes that are one size too small (to try to make her lose weight).
Evelyn and Deborah have a bit of a strained mother/daughter relationship where the latter blames the former for all of her problems.
Evelyn's comment to Deborah that the latter's low self-esteem is just good common sense.

VIOLENCE: Monica accidentally runs face first into a sliding glass door (and slightly bloodies her nose, but is otherwise okay).

Reviewed December 10, 2004 / Posted December 17, 2004

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