"Rudo y Cursi" is a sports movie for people who couldn't care less about sports. It's set in the world of Mexican professional fъtbol, but very little soccer actually intrudes upon the story, which is a standard rags-to-riches tale energized by a pair of lively performances from its stars. Diego Luna and Gael Garcнa Bernal, longtime friends who broke out together in the 2001 hit "Y tu mamб tambiйn," play a pair of half-brothers stuck in the bumpkin flatlands of rural Mexico dreaming of fame and fortune, and the actors' loose, squabbling interplay lifts the film above the sturdy genre clichйs on which it's been built. (Beyond reteaming Luna and Garcнa Bernal, the movie also reunited them with writer-director Carlos Cuarуn, who cowrote "Y tu mamб" with that film's director, his brother Alfonso Cuarуn — one of the producers of this picture, along with fellow Mexican movie titans Guillermo del Toro and Alejandro Gonzбlez Iсбrritu.)
The two brothers, nicknamed Rudo (Luna) and Cursi (Garcнa Bernal), are unhappy in their humble home village, picking bananas and playing smalltime soccer on the side. Rudo is a great natural goalie ("You're a wall!" a fan later tells him) and Cursi has a golden kick (although he really longs to become a pop idol — a dream unclouded by the fact that he's a terrible singer). After a traveling sports scout named Batuta (Guillermo Francella) spots them in a village game, they soon find themselves in Mexico City — the big time — where they become key players on opposing teams. As stardom descends, all the usual complications ensue. Cursi, an aspiring playboy, acquires a luxury pad and some hot wheels, starts highlighting his hair, and soon gets suckered in by a beautiful sports groupie named Maya (Jessica Mas). Rudo is unswervingly loyal to his wife and kids back home, but he's a compulsive gambler, and soon he's in serious hock to some big-time mobsters — who know just what they'd like him to do to pay off his debt.
The movie has no major surprises (at least until the end, which is unexpectedly dark), but it's consistently funny. Rudo is taken aback by fans who clamor for his autograph, but also swear to kill him if he loses a big game. Meanwhile, Cursi learns he's been dumped by Maya when he sees her on television snuggled up to a new fъtbol hero, and the sight provides a double dose of overdue illumination: "She's f---ing some other idiot!" he yelps.
Luna, with his leading-man looks and woebegone expressions, is an ideal foil for Garcнa Bernal, whose motor mouth and lizardy grin keep the movie sparking along with lovable-idiot energy. They have real comic chemistry, and you have to hope they'll get together again in some future film — possibly with a more ambitious script at their disposal.
Don't miss Kurt Loder's reviews of "Star Trek" and "Little Ashes," also new in theaters this week.
Will the vampires grab more trophies than the slumdog? What was the year's ultimate onscreen WTF moment? It's up to you to decide the winners of the 2009 MTV Movie Awards. Vote now, and tune in on May 31 at 9 p.m. ET, when the big show airs live from the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, California.
Check out everything we've got on "Rudo y Cursi."
For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more - updated around the clock - visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.
