"La Bamba" is a movie which serves as a biography of a legendary and promising singer, a brilliant artist who unfortunately died at the age of 17 in a plane accident: Ritchie Valens.
This movie shows us how Ritchie Valens was born to poverty, destined for stardom and lived the American Dream, although the ending is tragic.
"La Bamba" is mostly a simple movie which can be watched without bad surprises, but it is nothing extraordinary. This isn't an Oscar winner, but I don't think that the movie had intentions to be. Better for the movie, because the Oscars subject is usually unfair.
This film doesn't concentrate only on Ritchie Valens: it also focuses on his family, especially his alcoholic and troublesome older brother Bob Morales.
Lou Diamond Phillips is awesome in this role. This is probably his best performance ever, although he doesn't really look at all like the real Ritchie Valens.
Esai Morales is great as Bob Morales and Danielle von Zerneck is pretty good as Ritchie's girlfriend Donna (she was his inspiration to create the song "Donna").
"La Bamba" is more than just a biographical story. It is also a musical and an epitome of the 1950's generation and lifestyle.
The soundtrack is brilliant, with famous Ritchie Valens's classics such as "La Bamba", "Donna", "Come On, Let's Go" and "We Belong Together". However, here these songs are wonderfully performed by Lou Diamond Phillips and his band Los Lobos. These magical and nostalgic songs are the best thing about this movie.
Overall, "La Bamba" is a reasonable movie but not one of those to watch over and over without getting tired of it because, although it has its good moments, it has also its weak moments, which aren't so little like that.
This movie shows us how Ritchie Valens was born to poverty, destined for stardom and lived the American Dream, although the ending is tragic.
"La Bamba" is mostly a simple movie which can be watched without bad surprises, but it is nothing extraordinary. This isn't an Oscar winner, but I don't think that the movie had intentions to be. Better for the movie, because the Oscars subject is usually unfair.
This film doesn't concentrate only on Ritchie Valens: it also focuses on his family, especially his alcoholic and troublesome older brother Bob Morales.
Lou Diamond Phillips is awesome in this role. This is probably his best performance ever, although he doesn't really look at all like the real Ritchie Valens.
Esai Morales is great as Bob Morales and Danielle von Zerneck is pretty good as Ritchie's girlfriend Donna (she was his inspiration to create the song "Donna").
"La Bamba" is more than just a biographical story. It is also a musical and an epitome of the 1950's generation and lifestyle.
The soundtrack is brilliant, with famous Ritchie Valens's classics such as "La Bamba", "Donna", "Come On, Let's Go" and "We Belong Together". However, here these songs are wonderfully performed by Lou Diamond Phillips and his band Los Lobos. These magical and nostalgic songs are the best thing about this movie.
Overall, "La Bamba" is a reasonable movie but not one of those to watch over and over without getting tired of it because, although it has its good moments, it has also its weak moments, which aren't so little like that.