Quinceanera

Theatrical Release Date: 2006 08 04 (USA - Limited)

UPC: 043396163089

Studio: Sony Pictures

MPAA Rating: R   Contains:[Adult Situations, Adult Humor, Profanity, Sexual Situations, Drug Content]

Summary: A Hispanic teenager travels the rough road to adult responsibility earlier than she expected in this independent drama. Magdalena (Emily Rios) is a young Latina who is looking forward to her upcoming quincea?era celebration -- the 15th birthday party that marks the passage into adulthood for Mexican-American women. Magdalena's expectations are raised by the lavish party her older cousin Eileen (Alicia Sixtos) gets for the occasion, but Magdalena's mother (Araceli Guzman-Rico) and father (Jesus Castanos-Chima) insist on a lower-key affair that will focus on the more responsible aspects of grown-up life. However, Magdalena gets a crash course in that subject when she discovers she's pregnant with the child of her boyfriend, Herman (J.R. Cruz); life at home becomes unbearable for her, and she leaves to live with her more sympathetic uncle, Tio Thomas (Chalo Gonzalez). Home for Tio Thomas and Magdalena is a small apartment in a building owned by James (Jason L. Wood) and Gary (David W. Ross), a gay couple looking to gentrify the neighborhood. Magdalena strikes up a friendship with her cousin Carlos (Jesse Garcia), a roughneck teen with a good heart who is also on the outs with his family when they discover he's experimenting with his sexuality. Produced in part by Todd Haynes, Quincea?era received its premiere at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Category: Comedy Drama

Awards: Grand Jury Prize - Dramatic – Sundance Film Festival Audience Award – Sundance Film Festival John Cassavetes Award – Independent Spirit Awards Producers Award – Independent Spirit Awards

Features: Commentary with filmmakers and cast
Behind-the-scenes featurette
Los Angeles premiere featurette
Bonus scene 'Mis Quince Anos'

Quinceanera

Format: Digital Video Disc (DVD)

Release Date: 01/09/2007

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Cinemascope

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1

Runtime: 91 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,Spanish,Portuguese

Subtitles: English,French,Portuguese,Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Disc #1 -- Quinceanera
1. Showtime [3:50]
2. Behind the Scenes [2:48]
3. A Bailar! [3:51]
4. The Hummer Limo [3:15]
5. The Bench [3:17]
6. House Warming [3:19]
7. Next Top Quincea?era [2:31]
8. Trouble Maker [4:18]
9. Loss for Words [3:42]
10. The Dress [3:55]
11. The Test [3:15]
12. Echo Parke! [2:49]
13. Who's the Father? [2:44]
14. Trying to Help [3:02]
15. Strong Swimmers [2:48]
16. Cinco de Mayo [3:55]
17. Barbeque [3:07]
18. Not in Service [3:47]
19. Talk of the School [3:13]
20. After 28 Years [3:45]
21. New Shirt [3:37]
22. Making Plans [2:37]
23. New Home [1:36]
24. The Shrine [2:32]
25. The Miracle [1:46]
26. Carlos Steps Up [3:02]
27. Science and Religion [1:27]
28. La Quincea?era [6:37]

Derek Armstrong

Moviegoers have seen plenty of movies about Los Angeles. That's where the screenwriters and studio execs live, so for 90 to 100 minutes, audiences live there, too. But they haven't seen this Los Angeles before, the version presented in Quinceanera. The film focuses on the Latino neighborhood of Echo Park, whose steady gentrification is both a plot point, and a real-world indication that it may soon become a setting safely homogenized for mainstream cinema. Writer-directors Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland take a girl's 15th birthday celebration, a rite of passage similar to a Southern debutante ball, as a jumping off point to examine this vibrant part of the L.A. landscape that's rarely documented on film. And they do this surprisingly effectively, given that their backgrounds in gay cinema (Fluffer, Gay Republicans) may have made that part of the story more interesting to them. The two worlds collide in the character of Carlos (Jessie Garcia). The first shot of Carlos shows a gang tattoo on the back of his neck, so viewers might expect a heavy-handed look at a clich?d character type given to violent outbursts. But Garcia and his directors really humanize Carlos, surprising the audience with his homosexuality while refraining from making him a saint. Also quite astute is the film's dialogue, a hodgepodge of English and Spanish that recognizes the inevitable dual heritage of these characters. This pre-existing cultural displacement only becomes more pronounced when the scandals of Carlos and Magdalena (Emily Rios) ostracize them from their families. When their great-uncle Tio (Chalo Gonzalez) -- deservedly portrayed as a saint in this case -- assembles together this makeshift family of outcasts, it's a touching display of blind acceptance. Quinceanera may occasionally paint in broad strokes, but it tells its small story with warmth and respect, making it a true find. ~ Derek Armstrong, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Carmen Aquirre  Actor 
Todd Haynes  Executive Producer 
Richard Glatzer  Director 
Richard Glatzer  Screenwriter 
Anne Clements  Producer 
Wash Westmoreland  Director 
Wash Westmoreland  Screenwriter 
Nicholas T. Boyias  Executive Producer 
Mihail Koulakis  Executive Producer 
Avi Raccah  Executive Producer 
Victor Bock  Composer (Music Score) 
Emily Rios  Actor 
Jesse Garcia  Actor 
Chalo Gonzalez  Actor 
J.R. Cruz  Actor 
Johnny Chávez  Actor 
Jason L. Wood  Actor 
Jesus Castanos-Chima  Actor 
David W. Ross  Actor 
Araceli Guzman-Rico  Actor 
James L. Wood  Actor 
Teresa-Michelle Ruiz  Actor 
Alicia Sixtos  Actor 
Lisette Avila  Actor 
Hector Quevedo  Actor 
German Zavala  Actor 
Carlos Linares  Actor 
Margarita Lugo  Actor 
Veronica Sixtos  Actor 
Valentin Martinez Medina  Actor 
Bertha Flamenco  Actor 
Jorge Ortiz  Actor 
Jasiel Flamenco  Actor 
Alexandra Escamilla  Actor 
Marlene Flamenco  Actor 
Martha Orloff  Actor 
Frankie Loyal  Actor 
Aris Taylor  Actor 
Rebecca López  Actor 
Alex Sánchez  Actor 
Blanca Reyes  Actor 
Bob Murphy  Actor 
Micah Schifman  Actor 
James Claude  Actor 
Dane Rosselli  Actor 
Daniel Vasquez  Actor 
Anthony Mendoza  Actor 
Danny Álvarez  Actor 
Terah Gisolo  Actor 
Laura Ann Masura  Actor 
Andy Bishop  Actor 
Ingrid Eggertsen  Actor 
Art Aroustamian  Actor 
Angela Muller  Actor 
Yvonne Majica-Nelson  Actor 
Johnny B.  Actor 
Joanie Tomsky  Actor 
Arthur H  Actor 
Joey Maan Yee-man  Actor 
Nancy Badillo  Actor 
Leslie Campos  Actor 
Mario Galvez  Actor 
Mercia García  Actor 
Diego Pablo  Actor 
Jason Rodriguez  Actor 

Country: USA