Lucia, Lucia (La Hija del caníbal) (2003)
Average Rating: 5.5/10
Reviews Counted: 49
Fresh: 22 | Rotten: 27
A relatively simple mid-life crisis story is burdened by overly cumbersome plot devices.
Average Rating: 5.6/10
Critic Reviews: 21
Fresh: 8 | Rotten: 13
A relatively simple mid-life crisis story is burdened by overly cumbersome plot devices.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.4/5
User Ratings: 1,105
Movie Info
Filmmaker Antonio Serrano, who made a splash with his first film Sexo, Pudor y Lagrimas, returns to the screen with this thriller from Mexico. Lucia (Cecilia Roth) is a woman whose life is thrown into chaos when her husband suddenly disappears without a trace. As Lucia searches for a clue to his whereabouts, she discovers evidence that suggests her husband had a dangerous secret life he never shared with her, and she finds she isn't the only person with an interest in finding him. Lucia, Lucia
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Cast
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Cecilia Roth
Lucia -
Carlos Álvarez-Novoa
Felix -
Kuno Becker
Adrian -
Javier Diaz Duenas
Inspector Garcia -
Margarita Isabel
Lucia's Mom -
Max Kerlow
Old Wehner -
Robert M. Martinez
Mr. Wehner -
Jose Elias Moreno II
Ramon -
Héctor Ortega
The Cannibal
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All Critics (52) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (22) | Rotten (27) | DVD (10)
It's the old midlife crisis tale, just without a lot of charm or surprises.
Top CriticRoth, as the writer-narrator and sexy center of the piece, simply shines.
I love a good story, too, but I prefer one that actually goes somewhere (although, as joy rides to nowhere are concerned, this one is a beaut).
Despite the potential for menace implied by its set-up, Lucia, Lucia is finally about finding the opposite.
Lucia, a writer of children's books, dips in and out of fiction in her own life, the line blurring so often that it's hard to tell what's real and what's fantasy in Lucia, Lucia. It's even harder to care.
Lucia, Lucia is nicely shot and edited, but the movie is a narrative mess.
...if a director isn't willing to commit to his own movie, then why pray tell should we?
A playful, though not strikingly original, engagement of the unreliable narrator, and a fluffy study of the contrast between wish-fulfilling fiction and cold, hard reality.
Lucía reveals a great deal about herself in 110 minutes of self-fulfilling narration, but imagine how much better the experience would have been had the story allowed itself to match that depth.
It's being touted as the latest chapter in the new wave of Mexican cinema, but comparing the meandering Lucia, Lucia to a milestone like Amores Perros is just plain loco.
More interested in getting to the next plot turn than in telling a coherent and compelling story.
Serrano's frequently mystifying device of having Lucía's cardboard psyche mess with the audience's minds is ultimately a confusing bore.
Lucia Lucia is well acted and creatively shot, but the problem is that at its core lies a mystery that isn't terribly interesting.
The picture aims to be cheeky and interesting. But more often it's annoying.
It's a nifty little premise that becomes even more engaging because of the movie's ability to look at ordinary events through extraordinary eyes.
The film is enjoyable in the manner of a high-gloss soap opera, but its forays into socio-political commentary are as laboured as its unnecessarily labyrinthine construction.
If you analyze it logically, 'Lucia, Lucia' doesn't make much sense, but if you buy into its zany obfuscation, it can be fun.
Who knows when the movie will take a trip down Mulholland Drive?
The ways and reasons we make fiction -- including the fiction of a happy marriage -- are the playful but resonant notions that keep the story afloat.
In many ways the Mexican director has made an Almodóvar film, with its quirky narrative and overwhelming affection for its lead characters. Like his Spanish counterpart, Serrano is witty without ever being vicious.
This journey of self-discovery hits a dead end long before the closing credits roll.
Audience Reviews for Lucia, Lucia (La Hija del caníbal)
Super Reviewer
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- Adrian: He who fears not the truth need not fear lies.
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- Lucia: Life isn't about getting. It's about losing.
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- Lucia: A true journey of discovery isn't about changing our surroundings, but about changing the way we see.
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Movie: ID: 15338 Title: Lucia, Lucia (La Hija del caníbal) Release Date: 2003-07-25 00:00:00.0 MPAA: 4 Status: 1
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