{"id":4141,"date":"2020-04-07T15:13:24","date_gmt":"2020-04-07T19:13:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reviewing\/?page_id=4141"},"modified":"2020-04-07T15:18:03","modified_gmt":"2020-04-07T19:18:03","slug":"chateau-vato-delivers-laughs-suspense","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reviewing\/?page_id=4141","title":{"rendered":"‘Chateau Vato’ delivers laughs, suspense"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Posted April 7, 2020<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By GRETA WEST<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Miami Beach resident and University of Miami professor Tom Musca brings his hilarious story of an impoverished Latino family who squat in a lavish Miami mansion and assume an upper-class lifestyle after discovering the wealthy owner\u2019s dead body to the screen in \u201cChateau Vato,\u201d which he wrote and directed. The film\u2019s premier was at the Olympia Theater on March 11 as part of the Miami International Film Festival. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Actor-comedian Paul Rodriguez stars as Gustavo Alvarez, owner of a landscaping business that is being undercut by rival Honduran gardeners. Rodriguez gained fame through his eponymous television series and has appeared in big-budget films like \u201cCrocodile Dundee\u201d with Paul Hogan, \u201cAli\u201d with Will Smith and Clint Eastwood\u2019s \u201cBlood Work.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the expected gags appear from one of the best-known Hispanic comics in the United States, Rodriguez plays him as a man who wants to do the right thing and clearly loves his family, especially his wife Lupe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mexican-American actress Elpidia Carrillo plays Gustavo\u2019s wife Lupe.  She is best known in the United States for her roles in the iconic action film \u201cPredator,\u201d \u201cBread and Roses\u201d and \u201cNine Lives.\u201d  Lupe is a little more willing than her husband to take over the abandoned mansion and embrace the upper-class lifestyle, even if it means entertaining the smarmy neighbor, played by Richard Haylor.  But she shows her softer side when caring for the infant at the residence where she works as a housekeeper, when she is not rebuking the advances of her employer, Mr. Treater, played by Wayne LeGette.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tomas Roldan plays Guatavo and Lupe\u2019s son, Nando.  He is a graduate of the New World\nSchool of the Arts and Rutgers University. \nHe has appeared in classical productions such as \u201cSense and Sensibility\u201d\nand \u201cFaust\u201d and even appeared in \u201cMeasure for Measure\u201d at the Shakespeare\u2019s\nGlobe Theater.  While Nando enjoys the\nattention of his new upper-class girlfriend, Tiffany Glickman, played by Tommi\nRose, he seems more interested in cracking the password of the coveted iPhone\nhe took from the dead owner.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

All the actors in \u201cChateau Vato\u201d\nplay their roles believably.  Any viewer\nwho is a resident of South Florida will recognize the characters, whether it is\na resemblance to their own lawn guy or their friend\u2019s mother who is in the\nJunior League.  And while the premise of\nthe story may seem slightly incredible, the characters\u2019 reactions add\ncredibility to the plot.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sensitive subject of\nimmigration is touched upon with Gustavo and the rival gardeners.  Gustavo and his crew are U.S. citizens are furious\nat losing their jobs to illegal aliens from Honduras. But the main character has\na much more progressive train of thought.  When Gustavo\u2019s crew calls the illegals cowards,\nhe defends them as brave men.  This adds\nanother dimension to the sometimes-monolithic depiction of Latino characters on\nthe screen.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, this is a\ncomedy.  Things are thrown and broken and\nthere\u2019s a lot of screaming, but you laugh. \nA vision of a hardworking family stumbling on a fortune that they didn\u2019t\nearn is a version of the American dream which transcends culture.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While there are plenty of belly\nlaughs to amuse the viewer, there are several lines of suspense that add\nintrigue.  How and who will find the\nfamily out?  Will it be Mariana, played\nby Patricia de Leon, who \u201caccidentally\u201d meets Lupe in a market, and tries a\nlittle too hard to get her to join the woman\u2019s club?  Will it be Russ Huard, played by Reed Favero,\nthe flashy realtor who Gustavo\u2019s daughter, Aurora, played by Jenny Arzola, has\nconvinced she knows the real estate business? \nAnd why is Huard trying so hard to track down the family\u2019s former\nresidence?  What about the dead owner\u2019s\nlong-lost son, Theo, played by Jayme Glusman? \nIs he really as altruistic as he seems? \nAnd just what is the password for the iPhone?  And who killed Horace Hancock?  And where is his body buried?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were a few technical issues where\nthe lighting seemed to darken and sound faded in and out, which will undoubtedly\nbe corrected before the film is set for wide distribution.  And while there were moments when the pace\nseemed to drag, all the story lines are neatly tied up in the end.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the cinematography is\nstunning.  From the beauty of the\nmanicured lawns in Miami Beach to the colorful lower-class homes in Hialeah, Miami\nis well captured visually.  The shots\ndone of the McArthur Causeway and over the intracoastal waterway are\nparticularly breathtaking.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Judging by the sold-out audience\u2019s\nreaction, this is a must-see film.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cChateau Vato\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n