Movie Review - Papi Chulo

I don't know much about Mexican culture or Mexican slang, but, from what I've gathered, the term "papi chulo" can either be a term of endearment or it can be an insult, depending on who is using the words. The word "chulo" itself was used to refer to effeminate men and it also referred to immigrant day laborers. Usually, the word was used by Americans as a derogatory term for Mexicans. This film, written and directed by John Butler (Handsome Devil), does seem to examine that term, not on a literal level, but on a level that looks at the relationship between an American man and a Mexican man, two men who are in many ways polar opposites. The film looks at how they look at each other and what their perceptions of each other are. It doesn't shy away from showing how those perceptions, particularly from white Americans, can be problematic to toxic or even exploitative.

Matt Bomer (The Normal Heart and Magic Mike) stars as Sean, a weatherman in Los Angeles who works for a local TV news station. The film opens with Sean having a mental breakdown live on camera during a telecast. He's given time off to recover before returning to the job. The cause of the breakdown isn't explained exactly. The only thing we glean is that his relationship to his boyfriend named Carlos ended some time ago. Yet, he keeps calling his ex-boyfriend and leaving him voicemails. It's a wonder why his ex-boyfriend isn't returning his calls, but whatever the reason, it's clear that Sean is obsessing over his ex.

Alejandro Patiño has had small roles in a lot of big films like The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018) and Iron Man 2 (2010). He's also done a lot of TV in small and supporting roles. This film might be the first feature where he's on the poster and who could be considered a co-lead or at least a strong supporting character. He co-stars here as Ernesto, a Mexican day laborer. He's not that much older than Sean. He's probably at most 15 years his senior, but he does come across as much older. Unlike Sean, he's not wealthy and doesn't have his own car. Unlike Sean, he works with his hands and has a more physical occupation. Unlike Sean, he has a family, children and grandchildren.

Sean lives in an area of Los Angeles, known as Eagle Rock. He has a beautiful home that is high atop the hills with great views of the landscape. He doesn't have a backyard. He instead has a back patio that is a wooden deck. There is a circular spot on the deck that Sean wants to repaint, so he goes to the Eagle Rock Lumber & Hardware store for supplies. He's not good at painting, so Sean decides to employ one of the day laborers who hang out next to the hardware store. He sees Ernesto and decides to pull him into his car.

It's not revealed until later, but Ernesto has a passing resemblance to Sean's ex-boyfriend. Sean pays Ernesto to repaint the deck. Almost immediately though, Sean disregards the deck and asks Ernesto to start spending time with him doing activities like riding a rowboat or hiking. It starts with having lunch with Ernesto and it escalates to Sean taking Ernesto to parties. Because Ernesto doesn't speak English and because Sean doesn't speak Spanish, they can't communicate that well beyond basic stuff. It doesn't stop Sean from rambling and unburdening himself to Ernesto who can't do anything but listen, and Ernesto does so because at the end of each day he gets paid a hundred dollars or more.

Ernesto calls his wife, Linda, and tells her what's happening. She references the film Pretty Woman (1990). She hasn't met Sean but she susses out that he's gay and has an interest in her husband that might be romantic. That could be just a stereotype about gay men that she could be making in a prejudiced way. Yet, Sean announces that he has an issue with pursuing married men. It's not clear if he means married gay men or married straight men or both. However, the film establishes that this film isn't going to go the way of Pretty Woman. It's clear that Sean is suffering from a mental illness, most likely depression. The film though isn't saying that Ernesto is the solution to that depression.

How Sean is behaving toward Ernesto isn't something that is lost to the filmmaker. Butler exposes that behavior as problematic and Sean is humiliated as a result. He doesn't come across as a charming benefactor in the way of Richard Gere's character in Pretty Woman. Yes, he's a sympathetic character, but when bad things happen to him, it's meant to seem as a corrective and a cautionary tale that what he's doing is not cool. It's also good that the film acknowledges that this situation can also come across as akin to Driving Miss Daisy (1989) and all the negative racial implications of that film. It's acknowledged as a way of signaling that Butler is self-aware of those racial implications and won't repeat them. The film walks a fine line of being funny and also being very cringe-worthy.

Rated R for language.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 41 mins.

Available on DVD and VOD via Breaking Glass Pictures.