Like Water for Chocolate

  • Review Date: August 29, 2005
  • R
  • Genre: Drama
  • 1992
 Review

Common Sense Media says

Passionate tale of lost and regained love.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

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Kids say

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What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this is a mature and sensual movie. While not sexually explicit, sexual desire and threats of infidelity drive the entire film. It also includes a rather abusive (both physically and emotionally) mother/daughter relationship.

  • While the film shows great passion and some very strong women, it also portrays a constant presence of infidelity on the part of both men and women.
  • The mother abuses her youngest daughter both physically and emotionally, attempted rape occurs, and someone catches on fire.
  • Constant sense of sexual tension, some overt moments of eroticism (but tasteful), male and female frontal nudity, and multiple instances of childbirth

What's the story?

The youngest of three daughters in a Mexican family, Tita, is doomed by tradition to remain a virgin and forever care for her mother. LIKE WATER FOR CHOCOLATE depicts the emotional struggle suffered by Tita following her loss of and longing for Pedro, and her attempts to escape the controlling fists of her mother. The film works through a series of highly charged relationships utilizing uncommon visual elegance and a sense of mysticism that visually depicts the Mexican literary tradition of magical realism.


Is it any good?

 

This movie was filmbed mostly in Spanish with English subtitles. Based on the first novel by screenwriter Laura Esquivel, it presents a visually stunning tale of repressed passion, lost love, and the magical powers of food.

Like Water for Chocolate swept the Ariel Awards (Mexico's equivalent to the American Oscars), garnering awards for best picture, acting, direction, screenplay, cinematography, set design, and production design. From story to execution, it exudes quality.


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What families can talk about

Families can talk about issues such as family duty, generational conflict, gender equality, and cultural traditions. Parents may also want to discuss how this film's use of magical realism differs from more traditional American writing and filmmaking.


This review was written by Kelly Kessler
Parent of 18 year old
September 22, 2010
 

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Kid, 13 years old
February 17, 2011
 
Amazing:)
I love it!!! I read the book for spanish, and it's amazing!!! The great thing about the movie is that the plot is very faithful to the book's plot, because the author actually wrote the script. It is also amazing to see how Esquivel links food to life; after I finished the book, I was pursued by a NEEEED to cook:)

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This review was written by Kelly Kessler
Studio:Miramax
Director:Alfonso Arau
Cast:Caroline Aaron, Lumi Cavazos, Marco Leonardi, Regina Tome
Genre:Drama
Run time:123 minutes
Theatrical release date:January 1, 1992
DVD release date:August 10, 1999
MPAA rating:R
MPAA explanation:sexuality

This review was written by Kelly Kessler
 

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.

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