Americano 2011

     Martin was born in Los Angeles and he lived there for his early childhood until his father took him to France to live with him.  Martin is now an adult in his late thirties and he gets a phone call telling him that his mother has died.  He needs to be the one to fly to LA because he has an American passport and his father does not.  There is an apartment that needs to be sold and his mother wanted to be buried in France.  Martin feels his mother didn’t want him and he doesn’t have any memories of living with her until after he learns of her death.  He gets very mixed up when he gets to LA and tries to find the woman that used to be the young girl he played with.  She had kept in contact with his mother until shortly before his mother died.  All he knows is that she lives in Mexico and her name is Lola.

     OK, I must cut Martin some slack (I don’t want to) because he believes his mother didn’t love him?   He goes to Mexico to find Lola.  He drives a beautiful vintage red Mustang convertible belonging to his mother’s friend and neighbor Linda.  Why does he think this car will still be on the street in Tijuana where he parked it when he returns from trying to find Lola?  It would be amazing for it to still be in the parking space in LA!!  Interesting from the beginning but begins to wander when Martin goes across the border.  3* (This movie is OK)  (I give the car 4*)

106 min, Drama directed by Mathieu Demy with Mathieu Demy, Geraldine Chaplin, Chiara Mastroianni, Carlos Bardem, Salma Hayek, Sabine Mamou.

Note:  Imdb 5.2 out of 10, 50% critic 27% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Metacrtic 50 out of 100 with 8 critics, Slant Magazine 1 1/2* out of 4* Bill Weber, Letterboxd 2.9* out of 5*, filmsdefrance.com. 4* James Travers, Amazon 3.5* out of 5* with 24 reviews.
 

Special Note:  I thought it was Geraldine Chaplin playing the role of his mother's friend and neighbor Linda.  She has been an actress since 1956 and speaks fluent French and Spanish.  She was born in Santa Monica, California July 31, 1944.  She was 67 at the time of filming.  Her mother was Oona Chaplin (Oona’s father was Eugene O’Neill famed American playwright and her mother was Agnes Boulton English-born socialite). Geraldine’s father was legendary entertainer Charlie Chaplin.