“Father of the Bride”: The Reinvention of a Comedy Classic Based on Latin Culture

At present, it is common for remakes of movies that were a success a few years ago to be made, thereby modernizing these titles for new generations. Now, from the hand of HBO Max, comes a new version of the 90's classic "Father of the Bride", a production that in turn is a remake of a 1950 film, inspired by a novel by Edward Streeter.

The 1991 film starred Steve Martin and Diane Keaton. This production was quite successful and is one of those classics to watch as a family and share a fun time full of laughter. It recounted the misadventures of a father when he finds out that his beloved daughter is getting married. The new version of this film is not limited to updating the story, but rather gives it a new focus by adopting two families of Latin American origin as the main axis.

The cast is made up of renowned figures and rising actors from the Hispanic-American world. We find in the cast Andy García, Gloria Estefan, Adria Arjona, Isabela Merced, Diego Boneta and Chloe Fineman. The direction was the responsibility of the Mexican Gary Alazraki ("Nosotros, los Nobles", "Club de Cuervos").

What can you expect from this movie? Here we tell you.

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What is "Father of the Bride" about?

Billy Herrera is a man who boasts of having made himself. He likes to say that he arrived from Cuba to Miami with no money in his pocket, but even so, he found a way to fulfill the American dream, which for him consisted of working, growing professionally, becoming one of the most famous architects in the region and provide your family with everything they need. However, Billy's life is far from being at its best. After a failed year of couples therapy, Ingrid, his wife, makes the decision to divorce. Just when they are about to communicate this fact to their relatives, the news breaks that the eldest daughter, Sofía, will marry Adán Castillo, her Mexican boyfriend, whom they do not know, and with whom she will move in less than a month. to the Aztec country.

The revelation not only causes Billy and his wife to postpone the announcement of their divorce until after the wedding and have to pretend that everything is going well between them, it also destroys the stability that remained in the life of this patriarch, who is quite close to his daughter, and who had big plans for her in Miami.

In the film, a Cuban and a Mexican family are presented, who have the mission of working together to carry out the untimely wedding. A fact that will not be easy due to the cultural, generational differences and worldviews of some of the members of each family group. Especially Billy, who will soon discover that ideas deeply rooted in him, such as that the father must approve of the daughter's fiancé or "he who pays is boss", will not be accepted by anyone and, therefore , he will be forced to reevaluate his traditions, if he really wants to get along with his wife, his daughters, his son-in-law and his particular family.

The Latino community is a large and diverse group. It brings together different nationalities and cultures. Although there are multiple meeting points between them, there are also numerous differences. "Father of the Bride" from the comedy allows a glimpse of some of those regions of coincidence and divergence of Mexican and Cuban culture. As well as the contrasts between immigrant parents and their children born in the United States.

The theme of masculinity is also touched on in this production. Billy is an old-fashioned individual in whom ideas persist such as that the man is the provider, likes certain sports and should relate to his partner in a certain way. On the other hand, Adán Castillo exercises a different masculinity, he allows himself to be vulnerable, he declares himself an admirer of his wife, he assures that he wants to be like her and both his customs and hobbies are contrary to those of the patriarch of the Herrera family, and even those of his own father. This contrast will be treated throughout the film.

This is a film about tradition and modernization, it presents us with a proud and conservative man who will find himself in the need to modify his understanding of the world and his way of acting in the face of today's new realities. The film operates as a sample of that journey that this character makes to recognize areas of himself in which he must give in or transform.

As a final point, it can be assured that "Father of the Bride" is a fresh and light comedy, full of Latin flavor, that fulfills its mission of entertaining, while serving as a means of representing Hispanic American culture.