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Lou Diamond Phillips, Esai Morales, Rosanna de Soto, Elizabeth Peņa, Danielle von Zerneck ... see more see more... , Joe Pantoliano , Marshall Crenshaw , Rick Dees , Howard Huntsberry , Brian Setzer , Daniel Valdez , Connie Alvarez , Sam Anderson , Tony Genaro , Ernesto Hernandez , Stephen Lee , Bob Morales , Mike Moroff , Dyana Ortelli , John Quade , Allison Robinson , Diane Rodriguez , Kim Sebastian , Irma Valcorta , Mrs. Connie Valenzuela , Noble Willingham , Geoffrey Rivas , Jeffrey Alan Chandler , Maggie Gwinn , Junie Lowry-Johnson , Eddie Frias

Lou Diamond Phillips plays legendary 1950s rocker Ritchie Valens (born Ricardo Valenzuela), in this musical biography. Before scoring radio and concert success with hits like "La Bamba", "C'mon Let's ... read more read more...Go", and "Donna", Valens was a 15-year-old migrant worker who worked with his mother Connie (Rosana De Soto). Valens' half-brother Bob Morales (Esai Morales) is a vitriolic ex-con who roars into the migrant camp on his Harley after his release from jail. Valens' musical talents are encouraged by his family -- though later various members of his family react to his fame with varying degrees of pride and envy -- and he soon earns an audition with legendary record producer and former Artie Shaw clarinet player Bob Keane (Joe Pantoliano). Valens soon appears in an Alan Freed rock n' roll teen exploitation film, lip-synching his blistering recorded version of "Ooh, My Head". When a romance with Donna Ludwig (Danielle von Zerneck) is forbidden by her conservative father, Valens pens the famous ballad that bears her name. Tours follow his chart success until the fatal plane crash that claimed the lives of Valens, The Big Bopper (aka J.P. Richardson), and Buddy Holly on February 3rd, 1959. The supporting cast is excellent with power-pop icon Marshall Crenshaw playing Buddy Holly singing "Crying, Waiting, Hoping". Brian Setzer accurately portrays rocker Eddie Cochran, and Howard Hunstberry plays Jackie Wilson and sings "Lonely Teardrops". Additional music is provided by Los Lobos, a band who traces their musical roots directly to Valens and other Mexican influences. Also making cameo appearances are the real-life Mrs. Connie Valenzuela and Bob Morales. Although not 100% historically accurate, La Bamba is much more accurate than 1978s The Buddy Holly Story. The feature turned a new generation on to the influential Tex-Mex rock that was an inspiration to such later rockers as The Bobby Fuller Four as well as Los Lobos. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Flixster Users

73% liked it

50,261 ratings

Critics

95% liked it

21 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 48 min.

Directed by: Luis Valdez

Release Date: July 24, 1987

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DVD Release Date: April 6, 1999

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Stats: 1,746 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,746)

  • spielberg00
    August 6, 2011
    spielberg00
    LA BAMBA is an unforgettable, well-acted classic about the life and tragic death of Mexican-American Ritchie Valens.
  • fb223580
    August 2, 2011
    fb223580
    Siblings and I loved this movie when we were kids... I distinctly remember us rocking around the room playing air guitar and belting out his songs :)
  • wildaly14
    January 29, 2011
    wildaly14
    Lou Diamond Philips effectively portrays the late Ritchie Valens. Esai Morales is also a gem as the conflicted drunkard brother.
  • SirPant
    September 29, 2009
    SirPant
    Lou Diamond Phillips's Ritchie Valens is a classic from my chidhood! Love it!
  • stormyweather980
    August 15, 2009
    stormyweather980
    "La Bamba" is the best biographical movie I've ever seen. It's the story of Ritchie Valens, the famous singer that sung some famous songs such as "La Bamba" and "Oh Donna." The movie tells the story of how Ritchie Valens achieved the fame as a singer and of how he dealt with it w... read morehile he was doing it. It also shows how his becoming rich didn't go well with his brother and how he met the girl of his dreams, Donna. All the great songs that Ritchie Valens recorded are in this movie, and sung to perfection.
    Even if you're not crazy about biographical movies, I still recommend seeing "La Bamba." It's just a great all-around movie and all the actors and actresses do a great job to make this movie a classic. NOTE: That was my Amazon review from the year 2000. Wow, this only averages 3 stars on Flixster? Crazy people! This is one of the best biographical movies ever, I've seen it several times.
  • Chiefilms
    March 2, 2008
    Chiefilms
    LDP making his loudest statement, good film with good music.
  • 76Majikat
    March 10, 2007
    76Majikat
    Great story, tragic loss
  • deano
    November 21, 2006
    deano
    An unpretentious but lively and spirited film with Lou Diamond Phillips excellent as the clean-cut Mexican pop idol Ritchie Valens.
  • Godless
    May 30, 2006
    Godless
    whats not to love about a mom yelling RIIITTTCHIEEEEEE!
  • chaleins
    December 7, 2010
    chaleins
    Some music biopics are about huge stars and their lives and loves. La Bamba is about Richie Valens, a rising star on the rock 'n roll scene who might have made an even bigger impact had it not been for his untimely death. As a film, writer/director Luis Valdez did a terrific job... read more of telling the very simple story of Richie, his family, and his dreams. It's not a big splashy film like an Elvis biopic or the excellent Walk The Line. It's a film that's big in heart if not in glitz. Produced by some respected veterans of Hollywood, the movie is clean, and uncluttered by too many cliche situations. Valdez also wrote the script, and it's clear he cared about his subject.


    I had the opportunity to meet and interview the Valenzuela family in the town where they still live near my own home in California. They were extremely proud of the film, and rightly so, it's a nice story, even if Valens life had some rough edges. His family was far from perfect, especially his half-brother (who later really cleaned up his act). It's slightly sanitized, but you can clearly see where the boy came from. Those are actually the best parts of the film.

    Lou Diamond Phillips really put a lot into this role, and I think it's the best thing he ever did, then or since. He has a certain charisma that was right for the very young Valens. His family dynamic is also well-explored, and the supporting cast fits this story like a glove. They really draw you into the story, and although Diamond-Phillips is undoubtedly handsomer than his real-life counterpart, he acted a certain awkwardness that the family said to me was quite similar to the real Valens. There's little material to draw upon for this biopic other than remembrances of his family, his music, his friends, and a few clips to draw upon. Valens wasn't quite the big name that some of the others were in the fateful plane crash, and he lived in a time before mass media. His American Bandstand appearance survives, and is recreated in the film.

    The film also does a good job at portraying the bias against a Hispanic singer, but how his musical peers, at least, were supportive. The music in the film is Valens own, rearranged some, and played with verve by Los Lobos. Additional arranging was done by Miles Goodman and Carlos Santana, and they did a fine job on this. The music is simple but captivating. It's easy to see why Valens songs are still danceable when others of his era have faded. He had a lot of real heart, and so does the movie.

    It's not a long film, so if you like music, biopics or just a movie that's not over-the-top, you might like La Bamba.

View All La Bamba Reviews

Critic Reviews

Teresa Talerico
January 1, 2011
Teresa Talerico, Common Sense Media

Sweet, sad rock-idol story for mature teens. Full Review

Rich Cline
February 7, 2005
Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall

solid, entertaining biopic

Alex Sandell
April 30, 2003
Alex Sandell, Juicy Cerebellum

Fairly well put together film about the hispanic king of rock'n roll.

Scott Weinberg
January 7, 2003
Scott Weinberg, eFilmCritic.com

Perhaps otherwise destined to be remembered as a talented footnote in musical history, Richie Valens is immortalized for the masses in this well-conceived and involving movie. Full Review

Clint Morris
September 18, 2002
Clint Morris, Moviehole

A musical extravaganza. Powerful, and superbly performed.

March 26, 2009
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Janet Maslin
June 12, 2003
Janet Maslin, New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Hal Hinson
January 1, 2000
Hal Hinson, Washington Post

Click to read the article Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Desson Thomson
January 1, 2000
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

Click to read the article Full Review

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La Bamba Trivia

  • Who played the role of Ritchie Valens in the movie La Bamba?  Answer »
  • In La Bamba Lou Diamond Phillips portrays Rock singer Ritchie Valens,who died in a plane crash that claimed the lives of two other rock singers. Which other rock stars died with Richie Valens  Answer »
  • The movie that portrays the life of Rock'n Roll star Richie Valens.  Answer »
  • In the movie La Bamba, what did the old man in Tijuana give Ritchie to help with his nightmares.  Answer »
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