TINTORERA is not a horror film but more of a drama about divers who are shark hunters. This is not a "nature vs man" movie, like THE BIRDS or JAWS but more of a sexy light, sun-soaked drama that could only have been made in the 1970s. Even if TINTORERA is not a really good film per se, I enjoyed almost everything about it, except for the shark part. Remove all the shark scenes and you have a sexy little film from Mexico. Nothing deep or revolutionary but oddly enough somewhat original: it's basically a story of a threesome (two guys and one girl) who decide to hang out and have fun with one another, sans attachment. They do eventually fall in love with each other (as demonstrated with the ring scene) and the whole concept of a threesome, probably alien to 99% of people out there, is handled in a surprisingly cool, non-sleazy way.
Some call this film soft-core yet it's not. For example, we never see people having simulated sex. They're naked, wearing next to nothing or kissing but never having sex. So, as forward thinking as TINTORERA is, with the threesome aspect, the treatment is oddly quaint, certainly compared to what's on cable TV these days. It's much more entertaining than SUMMER LOVERS, which is almost the same thing but without the sharks.
The acting is mediocre. The actors are better when they act in their native tongue than in English. Andreas Garcia is handsome (he sorta looks like John Kennedy Jr) and he fares better than anyone when it comes to acting but it's probably not because he's a good actor but just because he's brazen and spontaneous enough to look like he's acting. His acting style is almost identical to that of a young Richard Gere (see BREATHLESS). Susan George is also not a very good actress but her role here is not easy (a girl having an open relationship with two men) and she happens to pull it off because of the cute naivety she lends to a role that could have been tawdry. This understanding of the characters for the threesome makes me think that the director had more than just sleazy reasons for doing this movie.
Am I saying TINTORERA is not sleazy? No. It is sleazy in a "grindhouse" kinda way. But like I said, the threesome is the film's least sleazy aspect. Certainly compared to the moment when the two hitchhiking girls are being raped and they agree to it. Totally ridiculous. But fortunately, the film as a whole is not always on that extremely sleazy level. Another questionable aspect about the screenplay is the girl who gets killed by the shark after spending the night with Miguel. The way her character is treated is unintentionally funny. It's a playboy's dream come true: have sex with a girl and then let the sharks eat your date. No worries about unwanted pregnancies or clingy girlfriends. Arf. And the multiple scenes of real sharks getting killed won't endear animal lovers to this movie, even though I find this less hard to take than the killing of the defenseless turtle in CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST.
Once the story settles in the threesome plot-line, the film is fun and it finally finds its groove. I really enjoyed it. It might seem implausible to many, personally I thought it was actually well thought out. It's no JULES ET JIM but the the three characters complemented each other perfectly. It's difficult enough for two actors to have chemistry when playing a couple but here the three actors have chemistry together. Unfortunately that story-line doesn't last the entire length of the film and when one of the characters is killed and the love triangle falls apart and film concentrates only on the sharks, the film never recovers. It becomes boring, certainly because the main character is such a serious drip and because the sharks were never an important part of the story to begin with. Had the film kept the threesome story-line up to the end or at least had a better resolution to their relationship, then I would have given TINTORERA a higher rating.
Another thing going for TINTORERA is the Mexican scenery. It's really beautiful and makes me want to move there permanently.
I like the 1970s attitude toward sex and/or nudity. It's so carefree and natural looking, compared to the plastic actors of today. Forget the sharks and watch TINTORERA for the 70s sexiness and the beautiful Mexican vistas. It's a definitive guilty-pleasure.
Some call this film soft-core yet it's not. For example, we never see people having simulated sex. They're naked, wearing next to nothing or kissing but never having sex. So, as forward thinking as TINTORERA is, with the threesome aspect, the treatment is oddly quaint, certainly compared to what's on cable TV these days. It's much more entertaining than SUMMER LOVERS, which is almost the same thing but without the sharks.
The acting is mediocre. The actors are better when they act in their native tongue than in English. Andreas Garcia is handsome (he sorta looks like John Kennedy Jr) and he fares better than anyone when it comes to acting but it's probably not because he's a good actor but just because he's brazen and spontaneous enough to look like he's acting. His acting style is almost identical to that of a young Richard Gere (see BREATHLESS). Susan George is also not a very good actress but her role here is not easy (a girl having an open relationship with two men) and she happens to pull it off because of the cute naivety she lends to a role that could have been tawdry. This understanding of the characters for the threesome makes me think that the director had more than just sleazy reasons for doing this movie.
Am I saying TINTORERA is not sleazy? No. It is sleazy in a "grindhouse" kinda way. But like I said, the threesome is the film's least sleazy aspect. Certainly compared to the moment when the two hitchhiking girls are being raped and they agree to it. Totally ridiculous. But fortunately, the film as a whole is not always on that extremely sleazy level. Another questionable aspect about the screenplay is the girl who gets killed by the shark after spending the night with Miguel. The way her character is treated is unintentionally funny. It's a playboy's dream come true: have sex with a girl and then let the sharks eat your date. No worries about unwanted pregnancies or clingy girlfriends. Arf. And the multiple scenes of real sharks getting killed won't endear animal lovers to this movie, even though I find this less hard to take than the killing of the defenseless turtle in CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST.
Once the story settles in the threesome plot-line, the film is fun and it finally finds its groove. I really enjoyed it. It might seem implausible to many, personally I thought it was actually well thought out. It's no JULES ET JIM but the the three characters complemented each other perfectly. It's difficult enough for two actors to have chemistry when playing a couple but here the three actors have chemistry together. Unfortunately that story-line doesn't last the entire length of the film and when one of the characters is killed and the love triangle falls apart and film concentrates only on the sharks, the film never recovers. It becomes boring, certainly because the main character is such a serious drip and because the sharks were never an important part of the story to begin with. Had the film kept the threesome story-line up to the end or at least had a better resolution to their relationship, then I would have given TINTORERA a higher rating.
Another thing going for TINTORERA is the Mexican scenery. It's really beautiful and makes me want to move there permanently.
I like the 1970s attitude toward sex and/or nudity. It's so carefree and natural looking, compared to the plastic actors of today. Forget the sharks and watch TINTORERA for the 70s sexiness and the beautiful Mexican vistas. It's a definitive guilty-pleasure.