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Movies / Upcoming / Casa de los Babys
Casa de los Babys

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Casa de los Babys (2003)

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Reviews Counted:103

Fresh:61

Rotten:42

Average Rating:6/10

Consensus: Well-acted and thought provoking, if not completely satisfying.

Runtime: 1 hr 36 mins

Genre: Dramas

US Box Office: $312,136

Synopsis: A group of six women from the United States, each of whom wants to adopt a baby, are checked into a hotel in South America waiting for the paperwork to go through. As their wait stretches on for... A group of six women from the United States, each of whom wants to adopt a baby, are checked into a hotel in South America waiting for the paperwork to go through. As their wait stretches on for weeks, they each get to know each other, sharing their hopes and fears. Meanwhile, the film explores every layer of people who are effected by the industry--from the teenage girls who give their babies up for adoption to the nurses that care for them as they're being assigned to new mothers. The local homeless boys sniffing paint in the street clearly don't receive the parenting they deserve, and yet the hotel staff dealing with the wealthy U.S. mothers-to-be sees a different side of the story--these women may not make for competent moms. Actresses Marcia Gay Harden (as the wonderfully difficult Nan), Maggie Gyllenhaal (as the painfully naive Jennifer), Daryl Hannah (as the quietly new agey Skipper), Susan Lynch (as the humble and loving Eileen), Lili Taylor (as the tough and jaded Leslie), and Mary Steenburgen (as the graceful optimist Gayle) are outstanding together, displaying loads of talent and illustrating Sayles' knack for character development. A touching look at what it means to enter motherhood, complicated by issues of class, politics, and pure emotion, CASA DE LOS BABYS is a thorough and pensive film that only a skilled director like John Sayles could create in such a seamlessly effective way. [More]

Starring: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Marcia Gay Harden, Daryl Hannah, Lili Taylor

Starring: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Marcia Gay Harden, Daryl Hannah, Lili Taylor, Susan Lynch, Vanessa Martinez, Rita Moreno, Mary Steenburgen

Director: John Sayles

Director: John Sayles
Screenwriter: John Sayles
Producer: Lemore Syvan, Alejandro Springall
Composer: Mason Daring
Studio: IFC Films

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Casa de los Babys

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1 - 20 (sorted by source; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: 3BlackChicks Review | comment Comment
10/12/03
Kamal  'The Diva' Larsuel
Kamal 'The Diva' Larsuel
3BlackChicks Review

The topic--international adoption--is certainly compelling and the performances convincing, but as a drama, Casa de Los Babys never quite comes to life.

Full Review Source: About.com | comment Comment
10/07/03
Marcy Dermansky
Marcy Dermansky
About.com

A raw slice of life that goes beyond the obvious external issues.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
10/16/03
Kathy Cano Murillo
Kathy Cano Murillo
Arizona Republic

A jumble of ideas and stunning performances that never coalesce into a satisfying movie.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
10/12/03
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle

Sayles lets the befuddlements and ordinary complications of life take its course like a winding, sunlit stream.

Full Review Source: Bangitout.com | comment Comment
12/09/04
Jordan Hiller
Jordan Hiller
Bangitout.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Blunt Review | comment Comment
09/05/03
Emily Blunt
Emily Blunt
Blunt Review

[Sayles] does more showing than his usual telling, without forsaking his interest in people and the histories and societies that have created their problems.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
10/03/03
Wesley Morris
Wesley Morris
Boston Globe
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
10/04/03
Boston Phoenix

Goo-goo gag me.

Full Review Source: Boulder Weekly | comment Comment
02/09/04
Thomas Delapa
Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly

Its high points notwithstanding, Casa de Los Babys generally fails to make a lasting impression.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
09/20/03
Shlomo Schwartzberg
Shlomo Schwartzberg
Boxoffice Magazine

Though Casa de los Babys is a low-key effort, one that stops as suddenly as if Sayles turned off the camera and ambled away, it asks questions worth pondering.

Full Review Source: Charlotte Observer | comment Comment
10/17/03
Lawrence Toppman
Lawrence Toppman
Charlotte Observer

Sayles sees like a documentarian, showing us the women, listening to their stories, inviting us to share their hopes and fears and speculate about their motives.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
10/03/03
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Eschewing all sentiment, avoiding all pathos, keeping his film and most of the women hard as nails, [Sayles] manages to tell a compelling story.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
10/02/03
Michael Wilmington
Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune

Os poucos momentos de maior inspiração não são suficientes para fazer jus à carreira de Sayles, às belas atuações de seu elenco e tampouco ao importante tema de seu filme.

Full Review Source: Cinema em Cena | comment Comment
01/04/05
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena

Topical director John Sayles thoughtfully illustrates two sides of the burgeoning foreign baby trade in this documentary-style film.

Full Review Source: Citysearch | comment Comment
09/18/03
J. C. Farrow
J. C. Farrow
Citysearch

"Casa de los Baby's" is a frustrating and tedious experience to endure.

Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | comment Comment
05/15/09
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

Sayles keeps crankin' 'em out: socially conscious, diversity-embracing ensemble pieces... This one is minor and sketchy...

Full Review Source: Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN) | comment Comment
10/13/03
John Beifuss
John Beifuss
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)

A comical & penetrating look at a diverse group of American women who want to adopt South American bebes.

Full Review Source: Compuserve | comment Comment
08/10/03
Harvey S. Karten
Harvey S. Karten
Compuserve

Sayles does what he does best, opening a window onto a slice of life so believable, you'd swear the movie was a documentary if you didn't know better.

Full Review Source: Contra Costa Times | comment Comment
10/02/03
Mary F. Pols
Mary F. Pols
Contra Costa Times

Writer-director John Sayles has successfully tackled so many unexpected subjects that one has to wonder if he's got a dartboard in his office to help him pick his next topic.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
11/04/03
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by source; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
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