Radical (film)
| Radical | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Christopher Zalla |
| Written by | Christopher Zalla Joshua Davis |
| Produced by | Benjamin Odell Ivan Gutierrez Araico Joshuah Bearman Joshua Davis Eugenio Derbez |
| Starring | Eugenio Derbez Daniel Haddad Jennifer Trejo] Mia Fernanda Soli |
| Cinematography | Mateo London |
| Edited by | Eugenio Richer |
| Music by | Pascual Reyes Juan Pablo Villa |
Production company | 3Pas Studios EPIC Magazine The Lift |
| Distributed by | IFC Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 110 minutes |
| Country | Mexico |
| Language | Spanish[1] |
Radical is a 2023 Spanish language film directed by Christopher Zalla and co-written by Zalla and Joshua Davis.[2]
The movie, which is Zalla's second directorial feature film for theatrical release, premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. There the picture landed the "Festival favorite" award chosen by the audience.
Zalla co-wrote the screenplay with Joshua Davis based on Davis' 2013 WIRED magazine cover story.
The film stars Eugenio Derbez who is considered one of Mexico's best known actors as the teacher Sergio Juarez.[3][4]
Plot
What will Jose Urbina Lopez Elementary in Matamoros sixth grade student go on to be? They come from an oppressive environment rife with violence and suffer some of the worst academic scores in all of Mexico. Meanwhile the school has a draconian atmosphere. So here where it seems that there is no way out Sergio Juarez finds an open window opportunity to attempt a different approach. However, the only catch is Sergio really has no prior idea of what to do and so he does it all ad hoc.[5]
Critical reception
David Rooney in reviewing the film in the Hollywood Reporter states of Zalla's work in writing and directing the film (which fits into the Mentor/Student mode) that "director Christopher Zalla adheres to the subgenre’s conventions and doesn’t stint on sentimentality, but Radical more than earns its surging emotional payoff". Johnny Oleksinski reviewing the work in the New York Post calls it "a Spanish-language gem about a real teacher’s impact on a poor Mexican border town'.[6][7][1][8][9][2][10][11][12][13][14][2]
With 27 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes Radical has a 92.3 rating on the Tomatometer.[15]
References
- ^ a b Laffly, Tomris (January 20, 2023). "'Radical' Review: Conventional Tearjerker About an Inspiring Teacher Benefits From a Terrific Ensemble".
- ^ a b c Oleksinski, Johnny (January 20, 2023). "Sundance review: Sweet school drama 'Radical' stars Eugenio Derbez".
- ^ Parra, Rosa (January 24, 2023). "Rosa's Reviews: "Radical" In Mexico".
- ^ ""Radical" staring Eugenio Derbez: the story of Sergio Juarez, a real-life hero, wins "Festival Favorite Award" at Sundance 2023". January 29, 2023.
- ^ "Program Guide | Sundance Film Festival". festival.sundance.org.
- ^ "'A Thousand and One' and 'Going to Mars' win top prizes at Sundance". money.yahoo.com.
- ^ Taubin, Amy. "Amy Taubin on the 2023 Sundance Film Festival". www.artforum.com.
- ^ Rooney, David (January 27, 2023). "'Radical' Review: Eugenio Derbez Plays an Unorthodox Teacher in a Standard but Appealing Crowd-Pleaser".
- ^ Nast, Condé (January 19, 2023). "Radical, la película con Eugenio Derbez sobre la niña mexicana que fue nombrada 'la próxima Steve Jobs'". Vogue.
- ^ "2023 Sundance Film Festival: Best and Worst Films". Metacritic.
- ^ Roka, Les (January 26, 2023). "Sundance 2023: Radical electrifies emotional impact of innovative teacher's true story in an Mexican elementary school".
- ^ Villafana, Cody (February 5, 2023). "Sundance 2023 Review: Radical". WOAI.
- ^ Winston, Jaime (January 23, 2023). "Sundance 2023 Film Review: Radical". Salt Lake Magazine.
- ^ Cohen, Jason (February 1, 2023). "Three New, True Stories From the Texas-Mexico Border". Texas Monthly.
- ^ "Radical - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com.