Chuecatown (2007)

User Rating:

5.6/10   

Director:

Juan Flahn

Writers:

Dunia Ayaso (writer)
Juan Flahn (writer)

Release Date:

6 July 2007 (Spain)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Madrid Spain | Serial Killer | Upward Mobility | Gentrification | Mother Son Relationship

Cast

Montserrat Alcoverro
Ángel Burgos	...	Mario
Margarita Calatayud	...	Abuela de Lola
Eduardo Casanova
Joan Crosas	...	Sr. Pardo
Ana Fibla	...	Estheticiene 2
Carlos Fuentes	...	Rey
Mariola Fuentes	...	Lola
Antonio Municio	...	Raul
Pepón Nieto	...	Leo
Bruno Oro
Pablo Puyol	...	Víctor
Josele Román
Rosa Maria Sardà	...	Mila
Eduard Soto	...	Luis
Germán Tormo	...	Comisario
Concha Velasco	...	Antonia
Pedro Veral	...	Fran

Also Known As:

Boystown (USA)

Runtime:

Germany:93 min (European Film Market)

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color

Filming Locations:

Chueca, Madrid, Spain

Company:

Canonigo Films

Soundtrack:

Happy Chueca

A fun, silly, over-the-top dark comedy based on a comic book

When I first saw this promoted on Spanish television, I thought it looked too stupid to bother with. But then I saw that the cast included Rosa María Sardà, Concha Velasco, Joan Crosas and Edu Soto, all of whom are tremendously talented. So I decided to give it a shot.

It's a broadly played comedy/suspense piece involving the hunt for a serial killer: a snobby gay real estate developer who's bumping off old ladies and working-class people so he can gentrify Chueca, Madrid's somewhat run-down gay neighborhood. The central characters are a young, working-class gay couple who don't fit his image of the new Chueca. The film is loosely adapted from a Spanish comic book of the same title.

There's strong acting all around, including a charming performance by Carlos Fuentes, who had previously appeared in "Km0." Sardà and Velasco are their usual wonderful selves (the former playing a neurotic police inspector, and the latter playing the mother-in-law from hell).

I was particularly curious to see Soto in a film role, since I mostly know him as his television alter-ego (the manic club kid known as "el Neng," whom he played for years on late-night television). Here he gives a wonderfully goofy performance as a police detective.

Don't look for subtlety or profound meaning in this film, but it's a fun way to pass an hour or two.

At the festival screening I saw in Philadelphia, the English subtitles were basically good but problematic at spots. The translator missed all the references to American pop culture, misunderstood one or two bits of the dialog, and there were typos and spelling errors. Hopefully this will be fixed before it's released on DVD here.