Amores Perros

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu is one heck of a director. The man manages to pull together three stories coherently, manage a cadre of talented actors and keep you interested with beautiful shots, music and dialogue. I only wish he would do it with just one story instead of multiple ones. There are three stories of love in this film. All three are different forms of love and all three involve dogs in some capacity. I can't help but stress how impressed I was with Inarritu, I only wish the stories could have hooked me as much as his talent suggests.

The first story is of Octavio and his one sided infatuation with his sister-in-law. He has visions of rescuing her from his abusive brother and sad life. When an opportunity to make big money comes along by having his dog fight, he takes it up and the story deals with what happens as a consequence. The second story is of Daniel and Valeria. Daniel who was having an affair with Valeria finally leaves his wife and daughters to live with his mistress. Unforseen tragedy strikes and their relationship unravels with that tragedy and the desperate plight of their dog who is trapped beneath the floor boards of their apartment. The final story is of El Chivo, a homeless man who does contract killings and its constantly in sorrow over his past.

On a personal level I found the first story interesting but not totally engrossing, the second story did not work for me at all, the third story however was to me the meat of the film and worth every moment. I found myself wishing this whole movie had just been about El Chivo. And I know I must sound like Goldilocks right now but I love a good character and when I see one I want the director and writer to tell me as much as they know. El Chivo I want to know more about.

My favorite scenes involve him including one where he tails a target an he comes over a hill all in shadows as a guitar plays over the soundtrack. Or his heartfelt display of anguish and regret on the answering machine of a daughter who thought he died years earlier. In the end I liked 2/3 of the film. And it wasn't that the second story wasn't well executed, it just didn't resonate with me. It is definately worth watching.