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Will Ferrell, Diego Luna, Pedro Armendariz Jr., Genesis Rodriguez , Efren Ramirez ... see more see more... , Adrian Martinez , Gael García Bernal , Manuel E. Urrego , Nick Offerman , Jerry Collins , Louis Carazo , Sandra Echeverria , Elijah Velarde , Alejandro Patino , Eduardo Ricard , Pedro Lopez , James Victor , William Marquez , Dan Haggerty , José Luis "El Puma" Rodriguez , Eric Leiderman , Patty Guggenheim , Robert Dassie , Mariann Gavelo , Molly Shannon , Gayle Hooker , Thomas Rosales Jr. , Armando Guerrero , Mando Guerrero

Armando Alvarez (Will Ferrell) has lived and worked on his father's ranch in Mexico his entire life. As the ranch encounters financial difficulties, Armando's younger brother Raul (Diego Luna) shows u... read more read more...p with his new fiancée, Sonia (Genesis Rodriguez). It seems that Raul's success as an international businessman means the ranch's troubles are over as he pledges to settle all debts his father has incurred. But when Armando falls for Sonia, and Raul's business dealings turn out to be less than legit, all hell breaks loose as they find themselves in a war with Mexico's most feared drug lord, the mighty Onza (Gael Garcia Bernal). -- (C) Pantelion Films

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26,029 ratings

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81 critics

R, 1 hr. 24 min.

Directed by: Matt Piedmont

Release Date: March 16, 2012

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Flixster Reviews (501)

  • xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    April 8, 2012
    xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    Funniest movie you'll ever read.

    Not bad but not great either. Will Ferrell speaking Spanish is somewhat funny but I thought it was gonna be even funnier. The supporting cast wasn't that funny and that made the film less funny and a little boring. While watchable, I would not re... read morecommend spending the money on the film at the theaters, I would recommend waiting to rent or download. Not a buy for me, nor a second viewing.

    Armando Alvarez (Will Ferrell) has lived and worked on his father's ranch in Mexico his entire life. As the ranch encounters financial difficulties, Armando's younger brother Raul (Diego Luna), shows up with his new fiancé, Sonia (Genesis Rodriguez). It seems that Raul's success as an international businessman means the ranch's troubles are over as he pledges to settle all debts his father has incurred. But when Armando falls for Sonia, and Raul's business dealings turn out to be less than legit, all hell breaks loose as they find themselves in a war with Mexico's most feared drug lord, the mighty Onza (Gael Garcia Bernal).
  • fb100001592288964
    March 29, 2012
    fb100001592288964
    Very funny from parodying the notorious conventions of the telenovela and has a different, yet still solid performance by Will Ferrell. If you can take it in for its absurdly cheap and ridiculous tone, you'll have a lot of fun.
  • ghostdog86
    March 28, 2012
    ghostdog86
    Is "Casa de mi Padre" funny if you don't speak Spanish? Well, ehhh maybe near the end. The real question is: Is "Casa de mi Padre" funny to anyone who didn't grow up in a Mexican (Mexican-American) household with black and white ranchero movies on the television and crosses (or... read more pictures of the Pope) on the walls as far as the eye can see? The answer to that is unfortunately a resounding NO. In the end, this film may have been better served as an overly long SNL bit or as a Funny or Die internet segment.

    "Casa de mi Padre", is the type of average at best comedy you get when Will Ferrell is the star of the movie. Not surprisingly directed and written by former Saturday Night Live writers Matt Piedmont and Andrew Steele, this extremely slow satire of Mexican cinema doesn't seem to work as well as the trailers will have American audiences believing. And suffice to say, the Will Ferrell (Talladega Nights, Anchorman) Spanish speaking gimmick gets old fast, when teamed with a far too clever script which gives Ferrell almost no punch lines. What "Casa de mi Padre" really comes down to is if you don't understand the extremely high content of Mexican entertainment references this film is drenched in, then you will find yourself checking your watch before the opening credits finish rolling.

    In an old school, Cantinflas-esque, watered down Grindhouse style film, with the overwhelming feel of the most basic Univision novellas, comes the story of Armando Alvarez (Ferrell), a Mexican rancher who still lives with his dad (el Padre). Armando, the younger, dumber and whiter brother that, while is considered by most (including his father) to be an imbecile, believes in the power of "good over evil" (or whatever the good guy believes). His brother Raul, expertly played by Diego Luna, is a drug dealer, who is planning to enhance his drug dealer prowess by expanding his drug dealer-ness into the territory of a drug lord who goes by the name of Onza (brilliantly played by Gael Garcia Bernal). Now, what I have just laid out is the synopsis of a movie with all the potential in the world to be a hilarious satire (with the help of some half way decent writing) but unfortunately...it's just not that funny. At least not for a long, long, long time. In fact, the first hour the film is more so awkward to watch than anything, as Piedmont tries to direct in a super self aware and "B" movie style, with winks at the camera, Spanish-for-beginners dialogue and five dollar sets. But as this film moves forward and the kitschiness of Ferrell speaking Spanish wears off, the quirkiness of the movie drags "Casa de mi Padre" down with a quickness.

    Another hindrance to this film, as I had made mention of before, is how "Casa de mi Padre" relies solely on jokes which reference the look and feel of old fashioned Mexican ranchero films and novellas. So, if you have no idea what I just said, then there is no way you will find any humor in any part of this film...no matter how many times you have convinced yourself that Will Ferrell is lead actor material or that "Step Brothers" was a great movie.

    But if there is one overwhelming thing "Casa de mi Padre" has going for it, it is the high caliber acting throughout. Not so much Ferrell, but more so from the likes of Luna, Bernal and seasoned actor Pedro Armendariz Jr. playing el Padre, who masterfully encompasses everything overdramatized about Latin novellas that many Latin children grew up watching. And even though it is overwhelmingly true that the movie does not even begin to become remotely funny until almost an hour in, where Bernal and Luna almost completely take over (saving the struggling Ferrell from drowning amidst his hacky bit) the final thirty minutes of "Casa de mi Padre" is cinematic brilliance (in fact, outdoing the likes of Mexican satires such as "Machete"). It is just a shame that by the time the film gets to that point, many will have tuned out, simply because the first hour is void of humor. And I wouldn't blame any audience member for doing so, because as far as comedies go, that is completely unforgivable!

    Written by Markus Robinson, Edited by Nicole I. Ashland

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  • DrZeek
    March 21, 2012
    DrZeek
    DEA Agent Parker: Do. You. Speak American?
    Armando Alvarez: No sir. I don't speak American.

    I have got to hand it to Will Ferrell. In recent times, it seems like some have soured on some of his antics, which can happen to a lot of comedic stars who make a lot of movie... read mores that can be generally categorized in a similar way. I like Will Ferrell quite a bit, he makes me genuinely laugh, but more importantly, while it may not seem immediately apparent to some, he takes a lot of chances with his films. One can point to some of his roles and see a lot of the same elements shining through, but beyond some of the goofiness that he exudes (which, again, continues to make me laugh), there are some interesting choices being made. The one that provides the subject for this review is his Spanish language film, Casa de Mi Padre, a passion project of sorts, which has been independently financed and put out in limited release. It is not a great film, but I did laugh quite a bit during it and admired this weird, experimental parody of telenovelas.

    read the whole review at thecodeiszeek.com
  • axadntpron
    March 18, 2012
    axadntpron
    I had no idea what to expect from this film and I am glad I walked into it that way. It is bizarre, audacious, & absolutely hysterical. Don't read anything about it. Just close your laptop, head to the cinemas, and enjoy a truly original comedy.
  • fb508860270
    May 26, 2012
    fb508860270
    I have no idea who the audience is for this movie. Rarely do I walk out of something so confused, so perplexed, so oddly mesmerized by what just transpired. I'm not going to tell you this brings back the odd genius of something like Anchorman that is out there, but truly hilariou... read mores. But at the same time, Padre is not exactly a misfire either (it's hard to say something missed the mark when you have no idea what the hell they were aiming at). There are a few genuinely hilarious bits, and the rest is certainly intriguing enough not to turn away from. This is a very weird movie.
  • fb1025970122
    April 7, 2012
    fb1025970122
    The first thought that crossed my mind when I saw the trailer for "Casa de mi Padre" was "genius". It was such a broad comedy idea, one that hearkened back to films like "Blazing Saddles" that I was rolling the entire two minutes the trailer lasted. I am also a huge fan of Will F... read moreerrell and while I have always felt people are very divided on the comedian lately it has at least seemed that Ferrell has been attempting to do his best to provide a degree of diversity to his career. Last year his single release was the indie "Everything Must Go" that I rather enjoyed much more than I expected. Later this year he will continue his streak of big studio comedies with "The Campaign" that is likely to be in the tradition of "Anchorman", "Talladega", "Step Brothers", and "The Other Guys". What he has done here though is taken a gem of an idea and extended it to a feature length parody of the Spanish telenova. With it's intentionally low budget looks and over-dramatic performances "Casa de mi Padre" feels like an idea that Ferrell and his friends cooked up on the side as something to do in between bigger projects. Not that this is a bad thing, it has a few moments of pure greatness and the simple aspect of the commitment that Ferrell had to make in order to actually execute the biggest joke of the whole thing is commendable. I found myself glancing at the time a few times, this wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing, but seeing the running time of the film is a mere 84-minutes it only made me feel the steam was running a bit low in the second act. Luckily, the finale pretty much lives up to everything I could have hoped for this to be.

    What feels like a flash in the pan idea has been fleshed out by including every possible stereotype of the Mexican culture and their campy soap opera's mixed with something like a spaghetti western that looks like it was lost in the VHS era circa 1975. This may sound a tad ridiculous and I guess that is ultimately the point. Like fans of Ferrell the broad response of this film will likely be the same. Those who don't look too critically upon it will see it simply as fun. Those who do not, and those who are not Ferrell fans will likely not be turned by this one, as it could easily be taken as nothing more than ridiculous. The set up includes Ferrell as Armando Alvarez speaking passable Spanish with English subtitles as a Mexican rancher that loves the land and loves hanging out with his friends Esteban (Efren "Pedro" Ramirez) and Manuel (Adrian Martinez). he has never been highly regarded by his father and has always played second string to his more intelligent brother Raul (Diego Luna). When Raul returns home to announce his marriage to Sonia Lopez (a gorgeous Genesis Rodriguez) it is clear Raul has become entangled in the game of drug trafficking and threatens to take over the territory of local drug kingpin Onza (Gael Garcia Bernal). When Armando develops the hots for Sonia he is forced to face his past that has something to do with the death of his mother as well as saving his love from a death battle shoot out between Onza, Raul, and every other Mexican in the region where Armando bides his time.

    Though "Casa de mi Padre" is obviously an SNL-like skit that has been pushed to feature length, it still has a number of bits that land with just the perfect amount of comical grace. Such is the example where a big action scene should take place we are instead given a still photo of miniatures while a note from a crew member scrolls across giving us the reason for this unfortunate segment. It is these little quips that keep the movie from completely turning in on itself and hiding from the world. Ferrell also knows where to place a tune and how to make his character so innocent that he comes off genuinely sincere in situations where he is doing something that has nothing to do with the plot. This would probably bother a certain kind of viewer, but the random moments such as the ridiculous songs here are what makes this funnier that it would have been if they would have tried to play it straight without winking at the audience. This isn't to say the film doesn't have its missteps. There is a side plot that involves the great Nick Offerman (Parks & Rec) as a(nother) mustached American lawmen that is here to offer the racist view of how every Mexican is a drug dealer. Offerman certainly deserves more than this bit part and could have serviced the comedy much better were he given lines that really had bite rather than reminded us of jokes that have been around forever. There is also the fact the tone doesn't warrant itself a feature, rather it feels like it would have been more appropriate on the front page of the Funny or Die page. We all loved "The Landlord" but would it make a good feature? Exactly.

    I can't be too hard on the film though as I land in the pool of opinion that this isn't supposed to be anything more than a harmless parody and in that regard it keeps its head above water. "Serious" actors such a Luna and Bernal seem to be having a blast here, playing up what they have probably had to deal with in every casting call they've been a part of and Ferrell, as always, is so damn committed to the thing that you feel bad not giving into his indulgences every once in a while. This doesn't have the aspirations of something that wasn't meant to be completely absurd. I mean, for heavens sake we have a scene of love making that uses mannequin body doubles and goes on for way too long. That is the charm of Ferrell though as he isn't afraid to bring the weird and not apologize at the end for what you might have thought you were getting yourself into and what he actually delivered. He was committed 100% so he has nothing to be sorry about. "Casa de mi Padre" though does end up being pretty much exactly what I expected, if not a little less outlandish than I anticipated. It's all well and good though, this isn't a movie for everyone but if you have been a Ferrell fan for most of his career you will be pleased with the majority of what we have here and Ferrell himself certainly doesn't disappoint as he holds this whole thing together with that face and vocal tone that proves even without the comfort of being able to improv his way out of a situation he can still be the funniest guy in the room. It may not be his funniest performance, but I can't disagree with the tagline in that this is probably the funniest movie I've ever read.
  • olsonjd85
    March 31, 2012
    olsonjd85
    It's a bold, if not quite courageous comedy that allows Ferrell to mostly disassociate from his fame and remind us why we thought he was so funny in the first place. The film is all kinds of stupid (in the best way), but surprisingly well-made despite its constant (and often amus... read moreing) attempts to undermine its own competence.
  • varunu
    April 6, 2012
    varunu
    I would have undoubtedly enjoyed this more if I spoke Spanish, but overall I enjoyed this outrageously over-dramatic movie. The cast is excellent, and Ferrell atleast looks like he knows what he's doing. I did get the feeling that the movie was trying to justify its massive plot ... read moreholes to its telenovela roots, but that doesn't always translate to a full length movie. This movie also contains one of the weirder sex scenes, but I wont elaborate any further on that. Not bad, but a telenovela does not a full movie make.
  • dawndawn33
    April 1, 2012
    dawndawn33
    Sometimes I wonder why I put myself thru so many movies. It's an addiction I swear. I see a free afternoon and I just hafta cram in a trip to theater, even if the available options don't particularly excite me. Today, I was torn between Jeff Who Lives At Home and Casa De Mi Padre... read more. I chose Casa because it seemed like the more unique film, and I'd be more likely to wanna watch Jeff at home on DVD if I miss its run.

    On the surface, I thought this film would either be ghastly or genius. I didnt think middle ground was possible, but that's exactly where we landed. Kinda continuing this weekend's theme of unfulfilled potential, although in this case it was more a string of experiements, some of which worked and others that didnt.

    My general thought on Will Ferrell is that I prefer him in featured bit roles, not leads. But while I was watching this, I realized I should revise that statement. I prefer him when he has set boundaries. In those smaller parts, he's limited by his lack of screentime. In films like Stranger Than Fiction, where he takes a more serious turn, he's limited by the genre. Here, he was limited by the language. Because this was a Spanish speaking role, Ferrell was really reined in from his usual mayhem, and frankly I think that's much better for him. He had to really commit to everything he did and really think it thru rather than just cutting loose and playing around. While his absurdities do occassionally have moments of brilliance, I tend to find that for the most part he crosses the threshold of awkward.

    What I also loved about Casa was the subtle visual humor. Normally, I'm not a fan of sight gags, but again I made a realization that leads to a revision of that generalization. I dont like sight gags when they're the center of the comedy. Here, it was more understated, almost an after thought, and that's what was genius. They weren't calling attention to the obvious inconsistencies or the "badly" used props. Those bits were this close to fading into the background, which made them effortlessly effective.

    I dont particularly get homesick, but I do appreciate the occassional reminder of home, which is another factor I enjoyed. Getting to practice the language as I tried to translate before reading the subtitles, or some of the visuals of the costumes and the area. No, that's not exactly what home looked like, but you do find traces of old Mexican culture in Laredo. A big part of what Casa is is a parody of those over the top telenovelas. I may have watched a few here and there growing up, depending on the housekeeper that was around at the time. I remember there was one called Carrusel that we watched a lot. Well, I dont remember anything about it (except one episode where this one kid was rubbing lotion on his face in an attempt to make his skin white) just that there was a time when we had a daily appointment with the tv for that show. The point is I have just enough familiarity with the genre to appreciate a lot of the humor in this film. Another running joke was small budget effects, which culminated in an absolutely fantastic animal fight scene. I will say no more.

    We talked about Will Ferrell a bit already, but I did love the rest of the cast. You had your go to B listy Mexican boys: Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal, both of whom I continue to adore. Really liked Luna's more bad ass than usual character. Took it just to the edge of caricature, without going too far off the deep end. Genesis Rodriguez was simply stunning as the leading lady. She'd caught my attention in Man on a Ledge with her sassiness, and here she owned the screen far more than any of her costars.

    I left the theater mildly impressed but not necessarily satisfied, but in thinking back on it, really all I'm seeing are the positives. I really think I need to think about getting more sleep before getting to more movies.

    Casa De Mi Padre - \m/ \m/ \m/

    http://www.expletivedleted.com
    http://www.twitter.com/expletivedleted

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Critic Reviews

Ian Buckwalter
March 27, 2012
Ian Buckwalter, The Atlantic

As a low-budget independent not necessarily intended for a broad audience, Casa doesn't have to bow to the middle-of-the-road multiplex appeal that handcuffs many SNL-pedigreed films. That works to th... Full Review

Roger Moore
March 23, 2012
Roger Moore, McClatchy-Tribune News Service

Ferrell hurls himself into the melodramatic, heavy-breathing telenovela style of acting. And surrounded by actors who know the genre and get the joke (Efren Ramirez from Napoleon Dynamite among them),... Full Review

Eric D. Snider
March 17, 2012
Eric D. Snider, Film.com

I tend to be amused by Ferrell in most circumstances, and the things I like about him - his bizarre sensibilities hidden beneath a mainstream exterior, his unwavering sincerity regardless of his chara... Full Review

Dana Stevens
March 16, 2012
Dana Stevens, Slate

I regard Casa de Mi Padre as an interesting but failed experiment. Full Review

Peter Travers
March 16, 2012
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Ferrell is an hombre loco. Mi gusta. Full Review

Stephen Whitty
March 16, 2012
Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger

A product as cheap, empty and worth of a good beating as a piñata. Full Review

Rafer Guzman
March 16, 2012
Rafer Guzman, Newsday

For a movie with basically one idea -- spoofing the telenovela -- "Casa" is determined to take it as far as possible. Full Review

Rick Groen
March 16, 2012
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail

Really, Casa de mi Padre is a skit blown up to a feature flick, amusing for a while until its welcome wears out. Full Review

Sara Stewart
March 16, 2012
Sara Stewart, New York Post

As a full-length feature, "Casa" is simply a funny concept that starts to go stale around the 10-minute mark. Full Review

Michael O'Sullivan
March 16, 2012
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post

It's perfect for a short clip on FunnyorDie.com. Padded out to feature length, with a bunch of other slight and unmemorable laughs, it wears thin. Full Review

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Facts

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    • Onza: Sonia, why are you sleeping with this dirty rancher?
    • Armando: Stay away, or I'll beat you with these hands!
    • Miguel Ernesto: You 're just like your mother, a big heart but simple. You cannot help me , I need someone smart, and if you were smart you would know that you are dumb.
    • DEA Agent Parker: Do. You. Speak American?
    • Armando ALvarez: No sir. I don't speak American.
    • Armando ALvarez: My woman, Miss Lopez, must love the land as I do.
Submit a Fact | View All

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