The art of making a parody for the big screen gets more and more subjective to moviegoers. Some work on every level, while others seem to fly over the audience heads, leaving many to wonder why what they’re seeing is supposed to be funny. Will Ferrell’s latest comedy titled CASA DE MI PADRE is a rather loving nod to the over dramatic telenovelas, or Spanish soap opera-like love story films. If you’ve ever watched those types of movies, even by accident late at night, perhaps when flipping channels and landing on one of the many Spanish networks – then chances are you’ll understand what this is meant to be. The question is will anyone else…

The story revolves around Armando Alvarez (Ferrell) and his brother Raul (Diego Luna). Their father Miguel Ernesto (Pedro Armendáriz Jr. in his final role) seems to have little faith in Armando’s abilities, which is heightened by Raul bringing home a lovely new girlfriend named Sonia (Genesis Ramirez). Armando is content to pal around with his buddies Esteban (Efren Ramirez) and Manuel (Adrian Martinez), but during a routine horse ride through the hills they accidentally bear witness to a drug dealer named Onza (Gael García Bernal) and his violent actions. Not long after Armando discovers that Raul is in cahoots with Onza, and fears for what this will mean to his family legacy. To complicate matters, Armando also finds himself falling in love with Sonia, and her with him. You can imagine where all of this heads from here.

I appreciate the daring concept of a film like this, done almost completely in Spanish with English subtitles. On one hand, it’s asking a lot of the audience to essentially ‘read’ the comedy as it plays out on screen, especially considering most American audiences not liking subtitled films. But if you can get past that, and if you can understand the concept behind CASA DE MI PADRE, you’ll definitely have a lot of fun. There’s subtle comedy here, such as parodying low budget filmmaking by having a giant man arm deliver a glass from off screen meant to be coming from a petite maid – sight gags like that which may slip by less-attentive viewers. Ferrell, who admittedly knows very little Spanish, allows himself to get lost in the role convincingly. While the initial gag of having an actor like Will Ferrell speaking Spanish with a cast predominantly made up of actors who look at it as a first language, well, it’s at the very least intriguing, and I actually found myself getting into it enough to where Will being Will no longer affected me. Perhaps it’s the fact that most telenovelas are already a little laughable and over the top anyway, or maybe it’s the low budget humor, but I just found the whole exercise rather brilliant. All of the supporting performers are giving it their all, no matter how serious or silly the moment they’re in may be. Diego Luna brings a sincere quality to the brother on the wrong path, and Gael García Bernal has fun playing the smarmy drug dealer antagonist. Genesis Rodriguez lights up the screen as Sonia, which is actually her first filmed role, despite MAN ON A LEDGE beating this movie to theaters. She’s stunning and beautiful, and brings a sincerity to the part which helps it work, no matter how ridiculous some of the settings are that she’s in. Pedro Armendáriz Jr. delivers a fine and heartfelt final performance, also bringing gravitas to the title role of the piece – it’s also wonderful the film is dedicated to his memory. PARKS AND RECREATION star Nick Offerman has fun showing up a few times as the America DEA officer, but I would’ve liked to see more from Efren Ramirez and Adrian Martinez who are used ever so sparingly as Armando’s best friends.

The film is written by Andrew Steele and directed by Matt Piedmont, both men coming from past dealings with Ferrell either through SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE or the Funny or Die website. They’ve injected as much personal homages as possible into the project, including a James Bond style opening credit sequence, and even a Jim Henson Studios puppet – literally no potential homage to their favorite film projects is omitted, and it’s a fun thing to behold. This is also the first movie (that I’m aware of) from Pantelion Films, a partnership between Lionsgate Entertainment and Grupo Televisa. It’s a fun and funny tribute that most Hispanic audiences will likely be amused by. But will American audiences get the humor or be able to effectively enjoy the film? Time will tell. It’s definitely safe to call CASA DE MI PADRE a daring and inventive idea for comedy moviemaking, and I for one enjoyed the ride. If nothing else it’s a nice break from the typical Will Ferrell comedy, in which he seems to always play the same type of character and use the same types of jokes – this is anything but that.

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