
Raising Victor Vargas
2002, Comedy/Drama, 1h 28m
110 Reviews 5,000+ RatingsWhat to know
critics consensus
A coming-of-age tale marked by its authenticity. Read critic reviews
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Where to watch
Raising Victor Vargas Photos
Movie Info
On New York City's Lower East Side, Dominican teen and aspiring ladies' man Victor Vargas (Victor Rasuk) has nothing but girls on his mind. Though he talks a big game at the local pool, Vargas' true experience amounts to nothing more than a string of romantic rejections. After Vargas fails to improve his abysmal reputation by bedding an overweight classmate, he chooses a much more difficult target -- the stunning and stuck-up Judy Ramirez (Judy Marte).
Cast & Crew
Victor Rasuk
Victor Vargas
Victor Vargas
Judy Marte
Judy Martinez
Judy Martinez
Melonie Diaz
Melonie
Melonie
Altagracia Guzman
Grandma
Grandma
Silvestre Rasuk
Nino Vargas
Nino Vargas
Krystal Rodriguez
Vicki Vargas
Vicki Vargas
Critic Reviews for Raising Victor Vargas
Audience Reviews for Raising Victor Vargas
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Sep 08, 2011Much like it's main character, it charms you until you love it.Idrees K Super Reviewer
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Feb 17, 2011Wonderfully acted coming of age story for a small family that learns living life has to be taught to the matriarch of the family first. Cute story told from a different perspective than most have live but still a story many will relate to.Thomas J Super Reviewer
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Dec 02, 2010Perhaps because I came to this film with very high expectations (96 on the Tomato-meter) I ended up very disappointed, at times wondering, in spite of the very nice performace by the lead, why this film was made? I mean, what did it have to offer that was original or inventive? Nada. The film had so much of a been there, seen that, aspect that I became only vaguely interested in the blossoming love story, or in that of any of the other peripheral charactors. Though real for the most part, I didn't like the way Victor was ridiculed for hanging with a "fat girl", and how Victor later kept making references to his younger sister as "she got fat" said with real derision. While perhaps culturally accurate, perhaps the script would have been better served if the point was for Victor to rise above the obvious - but that would be a totally different (though perhaps better) film. There were some nice and true moments - the way the female lead used Victor as a "beard" to ward off the advances of other over-agressive males; or the side story of both leads best friends slowly exploring their physicality. However, what is the point - haven't we seen all this before? It has been said that this film is a "revelation" as far as its portrayal of NYC burough kids - but again - been there, seen that - for example - Summer of Sam. I dunno, I just couldn't get behind the film. There were too many kind of huh? moments - for example, what the heck is beer doing in the home of Victor's strict grandma - not likely would be an understatement - especially when the apartment only has grandma and three underaged children living in it. Then there's the family reconcilliation scene where they all go to church and pray that the family stays together - I get the message, you don't have to show grandma and ALL THREE kids buying a candle - boy did that slow down the pacing. This leads to the ending where Victor tells his girl that the reason he invited her to "his" place for dinner with the family was because he wanted to show her that his family was "who he is"... hmm, ok, I'll buy that, but again, it was just another flat scene that somehow didn't deliver the emotional punch that it should have. Ditto for the entire film unfortunately.paul s Super Reviewer
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Jun 25, 2009Interesting, slow paced film about some Latino kids struggling to find their way through a world foreign to this viewer's experience. This is a coming-of-age film that treats its subject matter with a genuine heart to get it right. The actors are refreshingly honest, if slightly unpolished. The story didn't need polish, however. What it had going for it was a strong sense of the family as the central unit of this society and a brutally honest portayal of life in the barrio in New York City. At times painful to watch, the characters still had the power to engender pathos for their situation and the fumbling toward relationships. Learning to trust means occasionally getting hurt, and these kids know this in a way that few of us can comprehend.Mark A Super Reviewer
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