La Bamba (film)
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| La Bamba | |
|---|---|
 DVD Cover |
|
| Directed by | Luis Valdez |
| Produced by | Executive Producer: Stuart Benjamin Producers: Bill Borden Taylor Hackford and others. |
| Written by | Luis Valdez |
| Starring | Lou Diamond Phillips Esai Morales Rosanna DeSoto |
| Music by | Carlos Santana Miles Goodman |
| Cinematography | Adam Greenberg |
| Editing by | Sheldon Kahn Don Brochu |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
| Release date(s) | July 24, 1987 |
| Running time | 108 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
La Bamba is a 1987 movie based on the real life events that affected the lives of rock star Ritchie Valens, his half-brother Bob Morales, his girlfriend Donna Ludwig and the rest of their families.
It also documents how Valens witnessed an air collision when he was young and was fearful of airplanes since then.[1]
Tagline: Born to poverty. Destined for stardom. He lived the American Dream.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The movie follows Ricardo Valenzuela (Lou Diamond Phillips), a normal teenage boy who becomes singing super-star Ritchie Valens. It depicts how he met and fell in love with Donna Ludwig, for whom he wrote a song that became a number one hit. The movie also has several subplots, such as his relationship with his mother (Rosanna DeSoto) and half-brother Bob Morales (Esai Morales), and how his brother felt that their mother favors Ritchie.
In one scene, Bob won an important art contest that helps promising cartoonists, only to throw away his prize because, in his mind, his mother doesn't seem to care enough. Bob resorts to drinking heavily and, at one point, leads him to end up crying in front of his mother's door yelling "I want to see my daughter!" in reference to the child he sired with Ritchie's ex-girlfriend, Rosie (Elizabeth Peña).
The film also focuses on Richie's fear of flying, and a recurring dream he has due to a plane crash that killed his friend when he was younger. Eventually, he must conquer his fear when asked to perform his song "Donna" on American Bandstand. His manager Bob Keane (Joe Pantoliano) helps him by giving him a little vodka to calm his nerves during the flight.
As Valens becomes famous, his responsibilities change. He has to go on tour with Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper after his hits "La Bamba" and "Donna" reach the top of the Billboard charts.
However, every time they get a chance, Ritchie and Bob sneak out and have fun by going to carnivals. They also take a road trip to Tijuana.
The movie ends with Valens, Holly, and The Bopper taking off in an airplane under a snow storm for their fateful flight.
As Bob is fixing a car he listens to the news that his brother's plane crashed without any survivors. Bob darts out of his driveway in an attempt to get to his mother before she hears the bad news through the radio. The news hits the whole Valenzuela family very hard. In the final scene we see Bob walking over a bridge and screaming the name of Ritchie, remembering all the good times they had together (in flashback).
Ritchie Valens was only seventeen years old when he passed, eight months after he signed to Del-Fi Records and produced three songs that hit the Billboard 100. As the credits roll we see Lou Diamond Phillips performing Valens' version of "La Bamba."
[edit] Background
This production had the full support of the Valenzuela family. Bob Morales and Connie Valenzuela even came to the set to help the actors portray their characters correctly.
Ritchie Valens' mother, Connie Valenzuela, makes an appearance as an older lady sitting next to Ritchie at the family's first party.
The original title of this film was, "Let's Go," named for Valens' hit song : "Come on Let's Go!"[2]
All of Ritchie Valens songs were performed by Los Lobos, and Brian Setzer has a cameo as Eddie Cochran. Other moderately popular musicians who portrayed other musicians of the same era depicted in the film, like The Big Bopper, also provided recordings for the film.
In its opening weekend, the film grossed a total of $5,698,884. La Bamba eventually grossed $52,678,820 domestically in twelve weeks.[3]
[edit] Facts vs. fiction
Valens is portrayed as having come down with the flu late in the film; in real life, The Big Bopper had come down ill.
The film also depicts the coin toss between Valens and one of Holly's band members, Tommy Allsup, as having taken place at the airport shortly before takeoff, with Holly having tossed the coin. In real life, the coin toss took place at the Surf Ballroom; the coin was tossed by a disc jockey who had been working the concert that night.[4]
[edit] Critical reception
The film was generally very well received. Roger Ebert in a review of the film said, "This is a good small movie, sweet and sentimental, about a kid who never really got a chance to show his stuff. The best things in it are the most unexpected things: the portraits of everyday life, of a loving mother, of a brother who loves and resents him, of a kid growing up and tasting fame and leaving everyone standing around at his funeral shocked that his life ended just as it seemed to be beginning."[5]
Janet Maslin, writing for the New York Times, was impressed with Lou Diamond Phillips' performance. She said, "A film like this is quite naturally a showcase for its star, and as Valens, Lou Diamond Phillips has a sweetness and sincerity that in no way diminish the toughness of his onstage persona. The role is blandly written, but Mr. Phillips gives Valens backbone."[6]
[edit] Cast and ratings
| Ratings | |
|---|---|
| Australia: | M |
| Brazil: | 12 |
| Finland: | K-12 |
| Germany: | 6 |
| Iceland: | L |
| Singapore: | PG |
| Sweden: | 11 |
| United Kingdom: | 15 |
| United States: | PG-13 |
- Lou Diamond Phillips as Ritchie Valens
- Esai Morales as Bob Morales
- Rosanna DeSoto as Connie Valenzuela
- Elizabeth Peña as Rosie Morales
- Danielle von Zerneck as Donna Ludwig
- Joe Pantoliano as Bob Keane
- Rick Dees as Ted Quille'
- Marshall Crenshaw as Buddy Holly
- Howard Huntsberry as Jackie Wilson
- Brian Setzer as Eddie Cochran
- Stephen Lee as The Big Bopper
- Connie Valenzuela as Older woman at party
[edit] Soundtrack
Being that the movie is a celebration of 1950s rock & roller Ritchie Valens, his music, and the music of his contemporaries, play a central part in the film.
An original motion picture soundtrack CD was released on June 30, 1987 on Warner Bros. Records. The CD contained twelve tracks. The first six songs consist of Los Lobos covers of Ritchie Valens' songs: "La Bamba,"' "Come On Lets Go," "Ooh My Head," "We Belong Together," "Framed," and "Donna."[7]
Other performers include: Howard Huntsberry, Marshall Crenshaw, and Brian Setzer.
Some songs like Big Bopper's "Chantilly Lace" were omitted from the release. Other omitted songs were "Oh Boy," "Rip It Up," "The Paddi Wack Song" (written by Valens), and "Sleepwalk."
[edit] Awards
Wins
- BMI Film & TV Awards: Film Music Award, Carlos Santana and Miles Goodman.
Nominations
- Golden Globes: Best Motion Picture, Drama.
[edit] See also
- 1950s Nostalgia Films.
- Ritchie Valens.
- La Bamba (song).
[edit] References
- ^ La Bamba at the Internet Movie Database.
- ^ IMDb, ibid.
- ^ The Numbers box office data. Last accessed: 1/12/07.
- ^ Urban Legends web site. Last accessed: 1/12/07.
- ^ Ebert, Roger. Chicago Sun Times, film review, July 24, 1987.
- ^ Maslin, Janet. New York Times, film review, July 24, 1987.
- ^ Amazon.com web site.
