It’s not absolutely necessary to be familiar with the conventions và archetypes of soapy telenovelas khổng lồ enjoy a few laughs with “Ana Maria in Novela Land,” a lightweight comedy about an obsessed viewer who magically switches places with the leading lady of her favorite TV show. But those who have at least a nodding acquaintance with the highly addictive serial dramas will smile even more often than the uninitiated as director and co-scripter Georgina Garcia Riedel (“How the Garcia Girls Spent Their Summer”) affectionately satirizes both the limited-run series & their most avid aficionados. This overlong but modestly amusing bilingual indie could attract a few fans of its own in limited theatrical release and ancillary platforms.
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Edy Ganem, of Lifetime’s “Devious Maids,” is by turns perky, sultry & screechy in the dual role of Ariana, the sexy/sullen heroine of a popular telenovela titled “Pasion sin limites” (“Passion Without Limits”), & Ana Maria, an under-achieving twentysomething who spends far too much time focused on the soap.Between live-tweeting the telenovela while it airs, writing fan hâm mộ fiction featuring its lead characters, & spending almost every waking moment mulling over new plot developments, Ana Maria has little time for anything else. Unfortunately, her inattentiveness has cost her three jobs. Even more unfortunately, she’s unable, or unwilling, to lớn devote time to her sister’s upcoming wedding or her best’s friend’s musical endeavors.
When a rogue lightning bolt and unexplained movie magic conspire lớn transport Ana Maria & Ariana into each other’s worlds, Ana Maria views the switcheroo as, quite literally, a dream come true. Trouble is, dreams have a nasty habit of turning into nightmares —especially when, while living la vida loca, Ana Maria finds herself torn between a wealthy older suitor (Juan Pablo Gamboa) & the suitor’s hunky son (Michael Steger), and blackmailed by the suitor’s creepy business associate (a zestfully over-the-top Luis Guzman).
Meanwhile, back in the “real” world, Ariana is horrified lớn find herself in the modest East Los Angeleshome where 26-year-old Ana Maria still lives with her parents (Elizabeth Pena, Nestor Serrano). At first, she fears —not without some justification — thatshe has been kidnapped. Her bizarre behavior puzzles và upsets Ana Maria’s clueless mom and dad, who assume —not without a lot of justification —their little girl has gone bonkers. Fortunately, they live next door lớn a nice young doctor (also played by Steger), who’s so sweet on Ana Maria that he doesn’t mind that she isn’t quite herself these days.
“Ana Maria in Novela Land” plays lượt thích a trả lời of bits and pieces borrowed from earlier (and better) comedies —“Pleasantville” & “The Purple Rose of Cairo” are just two of its most obvious sources —and the ratio of frantic vamping to lớn truly funny stuff grows higheras the film reaches the finish line. Still, Ganem has sufficient verve and appeal lớn sustain interest in both of her characters, và the sporadic tweaking of telenovelas và the fans who love them is often quite clever.
Inside the world of “Pasion sin limites,” Ana Maria is befuddled khổng lồ discover this is a place where toilets (and television sets) don’t exist, dowdy maids have colorfully checkered pasts, long-deceased characters aren’t necessarily dead, và unseen musicians provide intrusive accompaniment for every melodramatic moment. Meanwhile, back in reality, a Korean-American cop (John Patrick Barry) proudly announces he learned Spanish while studying —yes, you guessed it —telenovelas.
Production designer Laurel Frank & costume designer Lauren Oppelt contribute more than theirfair tóm tắt of sight gags while contrasting the lavish lifestyles of the telenovela cast with the unremarkable ordinariness of Ana Maria’s workaday world.The over credits respectfully note that “Ana Maria in Novela Land” is dedicated to Pena, who diedlast fall at age 55.
Film Review: ‘Ana Maria in Novela Land’
Reviewed at AMC Studio 30, Houston, Feb. 27, 2015. Running time: 93 MIN.
Production:A Fluency Studios release of a Synthetic Cinema Intl. production in association with Steakhaus Prods. Produced by Andrew Gernhard, Shane O'Brien, Zach O'Brien. Executive producers, Jose Nestor Marquez, Valerie Stadler.Crew:Directed by Georgina Garcia Riedel. Screenplay, Riedel, Jose Nestor Marquez. Camera (color), Tobia Datum; editor, Phillip J. Bartel; music, Mandy Hoffman; production designer, Laurel Frank; mix decorator, Siobhan O’Brien; costume designer, Lauren Oppelt; sound, Cody Peterson; associate producer, Jackson Gibbon; assistant director, Mark Wallace; casting, Valerie McCaffrey.
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With:Edy Ganem, Michael Steger, Luis Guzman, Elizabeth Pena, Tamara Taylor, Mercedes Mason, Nestor Serrano, Juan Pablo Gamboa, John Patrick Barry. (English, Spanish dialogue)
2015 1 hr 29 mins Drama, Comedy NR Watchlist
Prepare for big laughs when a telenovela tín đồ trades places with her favorite star, a temptress trapped in a wild love triangle.
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