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Emilio Echevarría, Gael García Bernal, Goya Toledo

Director Alejandro González Iñarritu's internationally acclaimed debut film recounts three tales that unfold and intertwine on the brutal streets of Mexico City. Streetwise loser Octavio (Gael García ...( read more  read more... )Bernal) has an obsessive crush on his sister-in-law; Daniel (Álvaro Guerrero) dumps his family for a disturbed supermodel; and ex-guerilla El Chivo (Emilio Echevarría) cares for a wounded dog while planning an assassination.

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110 critics

R, 2 hrs. 33 min.

Directed by: Alejandro González Iñárritu

Release Date: March 30, 2001

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DVD Release Date: September 25, 2001

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Flixster Reviews (5,642)

  • ceWEBrity
    October 25, 2009
    ceWEBrity
    An interesting and entirely involving prototype to the "hyperlink" film that's had more than its share of attention in Hollywood lately. Even though this is probably one of the quickest two and a half hours I've ever spent with a movie, I do wish that the film was created with mo...( read more)re economy. Obviously Amores Perros would not exist or function to its fullest if one of the three stories was abridged or removed, but the division of time between the rather large cast of main characters creates an unusual effect. I found that though I had developed a great interest in these people, I wasn't truly connected to them, feeling more like a detached observer than someone genuinely invested in their plights. They are elegantly rendered portraits, if only through virtue of some amazing acting; Inarritu gets flawless performances out of every single one of his actors here. It goes a long way in glossing over some of the heavier writing, such as Gael Garcia Bernal's caricaturally demonic older brother or the rather limp Abel-Cain scenario at the end. In the scope of the story he wanted to tell, I don't think Inarritu could have done much better, and overall the movie is a ringing success. Perhaps not a masterpiece, but an exciting and unique experiment in a narrative structure that would later be beaten into the ground.
  • SirPant
    September 30, 2009
    SirPant
    Well shot and thought provoking but disappointing due to it being far too long, over hyped and a bit contrived. Still a good film, although Dog lovers may disagree!
  • RiderOfTheStorms
    July 7, 2009
    RiderOfTheStorms
    If Your Up for a movie With one Damn Good Fucking Storyline, This is the movie YOu NEED to See!!!! A Truly Remarkable story about people, I swear it won't disappoint you jus get so drawn in.
  • PvtCaboose91
    May 5, 2009
    PvtCaboose91
    "You and your plans. You know what my grandmother used to say? If you want to make God laugh... tell Him your plans."


    First-time director Alejandro González Iñárritu burst into the world's cinema spotlight with his multi-award-winning feature Amores Perros (a.

    ...( read more)k.a. Love's a Bitch). Heralded as a masterpiece by audiences and critics alike, this acclaimed Mexican drama weaves together three diverse tales rich in thematic material concerning relationships, love and loss. Director Iñárritu infuses his picture with raw energy that's both intriguing and confrontational. Amores Perros is extremely compelling, expressive, entrancing and challenging. Featuring a non-liner storyline (ala Pulp Fiction), this gripping drama presents a mosaic of dissimilar characters living despondent lives in the economic melting pot of Mexico City who all become connected by a tragic car accident.


    Amores Perros shares undeniable similarities with Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction, although most of said similarities are at surface level. Like Tarantino's Oscar-nominated masterpiece, Iñárritu's film deals with a range of characters living on the seedy side of life. The plot unfolds episodically and in a non-coherent manner - characters from one segment occasionally feature in (or pass through) another. However, Pulp Fiction glamorised the characters - the conventional "bad guy" seemed hip and appealing, as established through witty dialogue and stylish filmmaking techniques. However, Amores Perros does not romanticise the characters. Iñárritu exposes his characters for what they are - human beings whose moral compasses have become twisted. Thus the territory may seem familiar to Pulp Fiction fans, but the vantage point is drastically divergent. Amores Perros introduces us to a veritable gallery of contemptible individuals. Of the multiple significant characters traversing through Iñárritu's terrain, not many could be considered sympathetic. The other characters form a web of corruption and deceit. There are assassins, murderers, philanderers, thieves, traitors, in addition to other varied riff-raff. Tarantino's anti-heroes are cool and debonair, always with the right one-liner to offer. Iñárritu's characters are brutal and lacking even a modicum of charm.


    Amores Perros begins with a kinetic, exhilarating, bone-crushing car chase. The devastating outcome of this chase acts as a catalyst for the rest of the stories for the film. Following this car chase, the film then imaginatively delves into three devastating stories involving characters dealing with loss, regret, and life's ruthless realities - all in the name of love. It's a risky device to delay crucial plot points until past a third of its runtime, but the individual stories - which weave in and out of each other with realistic disarray - are so transfixing that you're willing to go along with the ride until everything becomes clear.


    "Come away with me."


    The first story concerns an optimistic young man named Octavio (Bernal). He lives with his older brother Ramiro (Pérez), their mother, and Ramiro's young wife Susana (Bauche). Incessantly abused by Ramiro, Susana struggles to complete high school whilst trying to care for their infant son. Regardless of living in fear of his violent older brother, Octavio is hopelessly in love with his sister-in-law Susana and is determined to raise sufficient money to convince her to run away with him. But in Mexico City where poverty abounds, clean money is difficult to acquire. With little alternatives, Octavio enters his dog in the local dog-fighting circuit.

    Of the three stories, this is the most entertaining. A viewer can certainly grow concerned about Octavio and Susana. When the romance begins to go south, it's also affecting. The movie starts with the car accident from Octavio's perspective. At the end of this story it is replayed, but this time we meet two other characters who had been subtly introduced beforehand.


    The next narrative thread tracks two people: Daniel (Guerrero) and Valeria (Toledo). Valeria is a world-class model who has struck the big time. Her face and body dominate billboards throughout Mexico City. Daniel is a magazine publisher who has left his wife and two offspring to be with Valeria. Together, they make the perfect couple...until tragedy strikes. Valeria is critically injured in the car accident. Daniel is therefore compelled to cope with living with a mentally and physically crippled woman whose modelling career is at an end. The hopeful life Daniel had envisioned begins to reek of decay. The relationship between them takes a slow downward spiral as Valeria loses herself in a bout of depression, and Daniel learns that fantasy and reality are never the same.

    The middle story suits the film on thematic level, but on a story level it seems detached. The story stands on its own, and is a study of delusion and impossible love. It's powerfully acted by Goya Toledo and Álvaro Guerrero.


    The final story is about El Chivo (Echevarría) - an enigmatic, wild-looking figure that drifts around the periphery of the preceding stories until his tale is finally told. Chivo is fundamentally a hobo hitman who prefers the companionship of dogs rather than people, endlessly wandering the streets of Mexico City with his cart and menagerie of stray dogs. An ex-guerrilla, Chivo has spent 20 years in prison; long ago abandoning his wife and daughter. Many years later, he's a man beleaguered with regrets. He spies on his adult offspring from afar, never mustering the courage to approach her. In order to feed himself (and his stray dogs) he carries out the occasional contract killing. However, upon his latest assignment, he arrives at a few realisations about the importance of family and wishes to start anew.

    If the first story concerns young love and the second about false love, then this story is about lost love. Emilio Echevarría carries this entire story. He has an immense screen presence that builds the character's mysterious qualities. His emotional scene in the end - a plea to his long lost daughter - is both extraordinary and heart-wrenching.


    A theme crucial to the plot(s) of Amores Perros is the character's relationships with their canine companions. The dogs in this picture are about as significant as the human characters.

    In spite of loving his dog more than anyone else in his entire family, Octavio willingly jeopardises the life of his dog in vicious fights to win his fortune.
    Valerie loves her pooch Ritchie more than she would a child (and, one might argue, more than Daniel). When Ritchie gets trapped underneath the apartment floor, her dog's confinement begins to distinctively reflect her own.
    El Chivo treats his mangy pack of dogs with greater respect than he accords to any human.

    By elevating dogs to this level of importance, Alejandro González Iñárritu is making a proclamation about the level to which society has stooped. Amores Perros is a sombre commentary regarding a culture where persons care more about their dogs than they do about any other humans.


    Amores Perros is a tremendously confronting film. Raw emotion plays a large role in the story and it's difficult to stomach. The explicit scenes depicting dog fights will prove gruelling and excruciating for animal lovers. These dogs seem to be genuinely fighting. As a matter of fact, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in England complained about the dog-fighting scenes to the British Board of Film Classification. The faint of heart may be appalled with the constant sight of dead, bloody dogs. These scenes, however, are necessary to the film - not solely to help create the film's atmosphere and emotion but to offer a parallel to the world these characters dwell in.

    The film has been implemented magnificently. Music is employed effectively to provoke emotion in the viewer. The direction is wonderful and the editing sublime. Following his successful directorial debut, Iñárritu went on to direct 21 Grams and Babel - both of which received critical acclaim. His first film, though, still remains a stirring, visceral eulogy to life, loss and dog-fighting on the mean streets of Mexico.


    Both poignant and astonishing, Iñárritu has directed a truly beautiful and confronting drama infused with the affluence, violence and poverty that constitute the soul of Mexico City. Highlighting the sharp contrast between poverty and the wealth of more affluent citizens, the film's deeply textured characterisations and locations generate a depth infrequently witnessed in Hollywood cinema. The sheer energy of Amores Perros is breathtaking. Director Iñárritu exudes a masterful control of story and style, blending the two impeccably to generate an incredible film. Although the visual flair is omnipresent, it never obstructs the story. Style over substance is an all-too-common occurrence of late, so it's refreshing (to say the least) to behold an extremely stylised film that never falls into this trap. With its stalwart cast, and featuring one of the most frenzied car chases in recent memory, this is one drama every cinema buff simply must see.


    Iñárritu has surrounded himself with an amazing cast. Amores Perros is an ensemble piece, yet there isn't a poor performance in sight - even the trained dogs do solid jobs. The first story is undoubtedly stolen by the appealing Gael García Bernal. Bernal's performance throughout the film encompasses the correct gamut of emotion - ranging from utter joy and elation to anguish, desperation and widespread emotional devastation. The young actor manages everything with professionalism and skill. He is competently supported by Vanessa Bauche whose naïve yet optimistic Susana is tremendously believable. Her quandary seems hopeless, but she never gives up hope.

    Emilio Echevarría places forth a magnificent and thoughtful performance as the hopeful El Chivo. He's simply magnetic, with radiating eyes staring out from beneath shaggy eyebrows. They are the eyes of an extremist, yet there's also a feeling of unspeakable loss in them as they gaze in the direction of his long-lost daughter. The realism conveyed by the actor contributes significantly to the story as he immerses himself into the character to a required standard.

    The rest of the performances - Goya Toldeo as Valeria, Álvaro Guerrero as Daniel and Marco Pérez as Octavio's brother Ramiro - are all utterly brilliant.


    This film was nominated for both a Golden Globe award and an Academy award in the category of Best Foreign Language Film. Amores Perros has also won a number of prestigious awards at various film festivals, including Cannes where it received the audience awards for Best Film (Critics Week and the Young Critics Award). In addition to these, the film has also received wide critical acclaim from both the critics and audiences alike (much-respected critic Roger Ebert wrote a glowing review of the film). Watching the film, it's not difficult to understand why. Iñárritu's directorial style contains elements of Tarantino, and others. Ultimately, though, the synthesis is all his own. Amores Perros is more than just a strong debut; it's terrific, gritty filmmaking.


    The emotional roller coaster ride of Amores Perros commences with a frenetic, breathless car chase. This wonderful energy pervades the film until the dramatic climax. This is the kind of film that allows you to see the world differently after watching it. Contemplative, provocative and excellently made - this is first-rate filmmaking. It's horrific and tender, raw and lyrical - albeit sometimes excruciatingly overlong.


    "Being tough won't make you smart."
  • 76Majikat
    November 25, 2008
    76Majikat
    Utterly brilliant! Completely worthy of all it's praise. If you like films where various stories intertwine then this is an absolute must.

    The acting, the plot and pretty much everything about this film was gritty and realistic.

    VERDICT: You do need patience with this fi...( read more)lm, but one I definitely recommend people to see
  • gamaluc
    November 18, 2009
    gamaluc
    THE THREE STORIES ARE WELL CONNECTEC AND KEEPS YOU ATTACHED TO THE SCREEN!
  • jam233
    November 18, 2009
    jam233
    Exciting thriller, a bit too graphic for my taste but quite good. There are definitely some scenes that are not easy to watch. Brutally realistic, very well acted and it has a lot of style.
  • speedymymy
    November 13, 2009
    speedymymy
    J'ai bien aimé la structure du film et les personnages sont bien définis. j'ai par contre manqué le debut mais ce que j'ai vu etait vraiment interessant
  • hugenymetsfan
    November 2, 2009
    hugenymetsfan
    One of the best movies that no one has heard of. Check this out for sure and look at why life is a bitch
  • fungirot
    October 30, 2009
    fungirot
    I know I've seen this, but I can only remember bits of it.

View All Amores Perros Reviews

Critic Reviews

April 16, 2001
David Edelstein, Slate

Just keeps coming at you, switching characters, tones, and rhythms to keep you off-guard. full review

April 13, 2001
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The work of a born filmmaker. full review

View more Amores Perros reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

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Amores Perros Trivia

  • Besides Amores Perros, Alejandro González Iñarritu directed a movie starring Naomi Watts, Benicio del Toro, and Sean Penn. What movie is it?  Answer »
  • From which movie does this tagline come from: "Love is betrayal. Love is anguish. Love is sin. Love is selfish. Love is hope. Love is pain. Love is death. What is love? Love's a bitch.   Answer »
  • Which of the following movies was NOT directed by Alfonso Cuarón?  Answer »
  • He was the director of "Babel", "21 Grams" and "Amores Perros"   Answer »
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