Absolutely brilliant

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

This movie describes the relationship between Ana and her mother. It can accurately portrait the value of a traditional Mexican woman. In the movie, we can see that the expectation of Ana's mother is so different from Ana while Ana is a first generation American born Mexican. Ana's mother has a strong sense of family value and the expectation on a traditional Mexican woman. In a particular scene, Ana was taught by her mother how to "walk like a woman" while we can also relate the last scene that Ana walked like a woman in New York. The director of this movie tries to convey a message that "real women" do not need to be defined by the society. If you have curves, then you are a real woman.

"Real Women Have Curves" concerns the generational gap that occurs in the abrasive relationship between a old-fashioned Hispanic mother and her daughter in contemporary Los Angeles. This impressive HBO Films release examines the place of women in twenty-first century society from the perspective of a rebellious young Latino teenager who refuses to follow in her mother's traditional footsteps; meaning, seek a man, a marriage, and the responsibility of rearing children. Instead, our heroine wants to attend college and rise about the lowly economic status that has paralyzed her parents and crippled her older sister who operates a sweat-shop where fashionable apparel is assembled for peanuts then sold for a fortune in a upper-scale name brand department store. No, "Real Women Have Curves" doesn't qualify as a formulaic mainstream comedy about a cute, sexy Anglo-Saxon star wading into and out of a series of romantic complications. Instead, this realistic, independent film deals with a teen who is overweight and struggles to resolve her own issues with her family as well as her future. Bogotá, Colombia, native Patricia Cardoso directed this insightful social drama with "MacArthur Park" scenarist Josefina Lopez and "A Dog Year" scribe George LaVoo. A bovine-looking America Ferrera delivers a sympathetic performance as the conflicted protagonist long before she achieved acclaim in the hit television series "Ugly Betty." Lupe Ontiveros is equally as good as her abusive mother who believes that she is doing what is best for her misguided daughter. Hispanic comedian George Lopez is restrained but effective as the heroine's high school English teacher who inspires her to go to college despite her dire shortage of financial aid. Among the issues that Ana (America Ferrera) and her mother Carmen (Lupe Ontiveros) quarrel about is her weight. Carmen has not had any luck getting her oldest daughter married off and she fears the worst for her youngest daughter. The action opens with Ana leaving high school after she graduates and facing an uncertain future. Her compassionate teacher wants her to pursue her education, but the demands of her family obstruct Ana's dreams. Carmen drives her daughter insane with her own demands. The scene in Estela's small sweat-shop factory when the ladies undress to proudly display their stretch marks and bulges is great. There is nothing contrived about this drama. Ultimately, "Real Women Have Curves" is a feminist film that pits female against female and the men stand out as sympathetic.

Real Women Have Curves is the break out film for Latina Director Patricia Cardoso. It's also the feature film debut of actress America Ferrera, recently of Ugly Betty fame. She plays a recent high school graduate who spends the summer after graduation working in her sister's sweat shop making dresses with her browbeaten sister, overbearing mother, and other women who can do no better really. Ferrera's character faces a dilemma between working in this dead-end job due to a guilt trip laid on her by her neurotic mother and attempting to get accepted to Columbia University in New York City. The film makes it clear that going to any college in such a familia would be nearly out of the question, so it is a monumental headache for Ferrera's character to consider this decision all summer while simultaneously battling her domineering mamacita (played to perfection by Lupe Ontiveros) and considering the overtures of a white male classmate. Along the way, Ferrera learns how to deal with her invalidating mama, accept herself for who she is, and take a chance at her dreams. Ferrera was certainly a discovery when this film was released, and she appears to have had little trouble since finding work. Her character, Ana, is so natural and realistic in this film that one forgets this is a movie. The film has several nice touches, such as the characters speaking both English and Spanish spontaneously which often happens in Latin-American families in real life. The scene with the two sisters facing off against the corporate businesswoman also dispels stereotypes Spanish-speaking people often have about others. The stripping scene in the sweatshop while liberating the women from the strictures society places on heavy women also signifies Ana's liberation from her oppressive mother's criticism, if only temporarily. The soundtrack is full of lively Spanish songs, adding to the film's appeal. The film is aided significantly by its location shooting. It won the Audience Award at Sundance. *** of 4 stars.

I saw this film when I was in an extremely vulnerable place during the Spring of 2002, when I was battling and just embarking on my journey to freedom from an eating disorder. It helped show me that women of all shapes and sizes can learn to appreciate themselves, regardless of their outward appearance - especially in light of the way society portrays how we are expected to look.I like the stand that Ana had in standing up against her mother, despite how it would be to be picked upon based on your outward appearance.I have only today ordered the DVD, as I feel it is one that I can watch time and time again.At the time of seeing this in the local Film Centre (for alternative films), I found it to be quite uplifting. Well worth viewing! Don't wait - go out and buy it now!