Jul 3, 2020

The Neighborhood (1982)


The first of at least three El vecindario films; an Alfonso Zayas joint which resembles El día de los albañiles (1984) - types of films which I don't think have equivalents in other countries.  The best way to describe them (as I don't think they have a genre name yet) is - sleazy blue collar soap operas. You just follow a handful of people who are somewhat interrelated as they go through their daily lives, encountering as much comedy as tragedy.  They're never dour, but rather effusive and full of life.  You have to try one of these films at least some point in your life.



 Hilda (Ana Luisa Peluffo) toasts with El Pichi (Freddy Fernández AKA 'El Pichi')

 They're both cheating on their spouse.

 Hilda's husband is home early.  Pichi runs away and in his haste forgets his shirt and puts on her panties.

 Hilda tries to stall her husband Lupe (Rafael Inclán).

Inclán is a mumbling bedraggled fellow... and Pichi is actually his boss. 

 Rossy Mendoza watches soaps 

 Her husband is Pichi; and she is always very nonplussed by his presence.

 She notices he's not wearing a shirt.  In all his hurry, he forgot.

 I love the home decor in these films.

 Even more alarming than his shirtlessness, is that she notices he's wearing women's panties.

Alfonso Zayas is Tony, the good guy of the film.   

Zayas' friend is José René Ruiz (known as Tun Tun) 

 Zayas is the chauffeur for Pichi.

 Pichi's fancy workplace.

 Pichi's office is stocked with lovely workers who he hits on regularly.

Pichi gives the bedraggled Inclán an assignment.  

 Angélica Chain is a glamorous celebrity model.

Chain's gams.

Because Angélica Chain has to show her boobs every time she has a scene in every movie she's in, we get this gratuitous exposure.  (If I had those, I'd show them off too).

Unexpectedly, Chain has something going with Inclán

 Time for a gratuitous shower scene.



 Pichi is such a Harvey Weinstein.  He promises the young actresses the world in order to get them out of their clothes.


 This scene is just fucking bizarre.

Zayas just grabs a woman walking alone down a street, then rips her clothes off and rapes her!

I literally don't understand this at all.  This has no consequence in the film and is completely out of character.  WTF?

Hilda, Inclán and their son Julian 

 Julian bumps into Angélica Chain 

 One thing leads to another.


Inclán finds his son doinking the woman he's cheating on his wife with. 

 An ambulance on Zayas' block.

 He and Tun Tun are disturbed to find that mother has died.

 Zayas moves his family in with Guadalupe (Clarissa Ahuet)

 Guadalupe is a maid for Pichi (you see how everyone's tied together?)

 Zayas's daughter Sofia gets involved with her relative (maybe her brother?) but it's okay, because we find that Sofia is actually Tun Tun's daughter (!)

 Zayas is all over Guadalupe at Pichi's residence.

  
 Pichi summons her and she has to go.

 Sofia gets married.

 It ends with Pichi cheating again with Hilda, and his own wife...

She's in bed with Zayas.  THE END



If you like this type of film, you'll like this.  If a sleazy Mexican blue collar soap opera comedy doesn't sound like your bag, then this is not for you.

Double Feature: The sequel to this film would work, or another Zayas film just like it: El día de los albañiles (1984)


★★★★★

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