Selena
(1997)
This biopic of the murdered Tejano music star is quite
compelling. It's is aided by the allure and chemistry
of it's three main actors. But the film is also a real
"love letter" to fans which can also be appreciated
by those only slightly interested in the singer. It's
power to captivate and charm us is only slightly diminished
by it's long music video type segments and it's odd
ending.
"Selena" starts at the beginning, with a look at what
lead her domineering father to push his daughter into
the limelight. Abraham Quintanilla Jr. is a sad man,
really. He is a frustrated musician who gave up his
dream of being a musician and singer in exchange for
a wife and children. Later, he forces his family to
practice as musicians and to sing in his restaurant.
Selena, as it is shown here, wanted to do this. The
film is authorized by Selena's family and Quintanilla
is listed as a Executive Producer, so Edward James Olmos
plays him as sympathetic. Yet is must be admitted that
while the film does show Abraham as a dreamer and a
good father, it also shows him as domineering, obnoxious,
driven, and stubborn. It's really a great performance
from Olmos that makes us both admire the man while,
just as quickly, makes us want to slap the shit out
of him. The most intriguing part of this character is
his comments about his daughter which sound patriarchal
at best, incestuous at worse.
The true star of the film is Jennifer Lopez, who plays
the adult "Selena." (Rebecca Lee Meza plays her as a
youth). We grow to love the girl because of her warmth,
her charm, her humor and her style. She is also wonderful
to look at. This feeling is multiplied when Jon Seda
comes into the plot as Chris, a guitar player who joins
the band. The two are remarkable together. They are
so cute and so funny, we can't help but fall in love
with them and hope desperately that they succeed. Seda
can convey so much with a look, a smile or a smattering
of words, it truly a remarkable performance.
Director/Scripter Gregory Nava really fashions a great
script here. The film isn't afraid to show us all about
Selena. This is it's true greatness. We learn not only
about Selena's life, but her musical triumphs, her business
ventures, and what her music really meant. It shows
us how the individual elements of Selena's music, her
sister's drumming, Chris' heavy metal guitar, formed
to give her music a unique sound. We learn about a concert
and press tour in Mexico where Selena's charm won over
a harsh press and soothed a savage crowd. These are
excellent moments and they help the film to show us
the huge mural that is the story of "Selena."
Behind the camera, Nava films the piece in a straight-
forward matter. There are some nice moments here and
there but overall, the film is nothing remarkable cinematically,
at least, until the end. The manner in which Nava films
Selena's murder, by basically not filming it, is an
interesting touch. I'm not sure why this method is chosen,
but it works to a certain degree. Bereft of dramatic
electricity and startling revelations, the climax of
the film is rather a non-event. In my mind, this hurts
the film, it doesn't really click. Maybe Nava wants
to spare us this tragic image. The film does recover
though as Nava moves to a succession of images of the
fans in mourning at memorials for the star. This is
when the tears begin to flow, when we see how deeply
this person affected her fans, when we see their saddened
faces. It is poignant.
Nava does include about 3 long music video type segments
in the film. These are for the fans. Those of us who
are not really into Selena's music must sit through
these rather dull places while Lopez lip-sings the songs
in Spanish. For us, it does slow the film down. I'm
sure fans love to sing along to the pieces; I know my
niece does. Let's face it, Selena's music is truly a
major part of what the film is all about so these pieces
are necessary. Nava does try some visual gimmicks but
they only help a bit.
"Selena" is a very good film. It shows us a sweet
and gentle woman who only wanted to sing and be on stage.
It shows us her life, her loves, her family, and her
dreams. It makes us love her. And then "Selena" does
something different. It skips the melodrama and just
shows us the senselessness and the sorrow of her death.
"Selena" quietly asks the question "why," knowing, deep
in it's heart, that there is no answer.
Note:
Also with Constance Marie as Selena's mom, Lupe Ontiveros
as Yolanda Saldivar and Jackie Guerra as Selena's sister
Suzette.
Score music by Dave Gruisin.
(Review written in 1997)
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