Jovem Aloucada

Despite the pros and the cons, me, I liked it. Very much! I saw it 3 times, to understand it better. First, I saw the Spanish version on You-tube, without subtitles, and I don't know Spanish perfectly. Very bold and very naturally interpreted by all actors. If you don't like the movie, because you are too puritanical and you will be shocked by the porn scenes, you will definitely like the music, abundant and very beautiful, especially the Spanish version of "Je ne regrette rien" by Edith Piaf, sung by Javiera Mena and the Italian song "No voglio mica la luna" originally performed by Fiordaliso, which became "Yo no te pido la luna", sung by the same Javiera Mena. Me, I'm young and wild even now, at 62.

Young and Wild is a chaotic look at a teen girl's life as she struggles to find her identity personally, religiously, and sexually. I might have been more intrigued by it if the main character wasn't so obnoxious. Throughout the film she is entirely self-centered and does nothing to redeem herself in any satisfying way. I know there are teens who behave this way, in fact many would say this kind of self-centeredness is a defining characteristic of the teenage years, but I don't particularly want them as the protagonist of a film I'm watching. It's kind of infuriating how her continued selfish exploration of her own wants and needs begins by alienating her family, then proceeds to tear into the people she "loves." There were some interesting ideas to explore, particularly when it came to her dilemma over her confused sexual desires, but it wasn't handled all that well. The end of the film was easily the most infuriating part. It seems to just skew off in a strange direction for no logical reason, and then lacks a satisfying resolution for anyone. And, if I'm honest, the overt sexuality of the film isn't exactly my cup of tea either. I think Young and Wild could have been good, but didn't live up to its potential.

YOUNG AND WILD (dir. Marialy Rivas) A sexy and thought provoking film from Chile about a young woman's journey to sexual maturity and the problems posed by her domineering and overbearing family. Because Daniella receives nothing but banal Christian platitudes about her emerging sexuality, she shares her private anguish and confusion with friends on the Internet in her blog entitled, "Young & Wild". The film makes the point that evangelical acculturation is only psychological coercion sweetened with biblical aphorisms, and offers no real answers and only false comfort. Daniella comes to reject the relentless dogma of her parents, and learns to accept the undetermined nature of life. She seems to realize that it's healthier to embrace an uncertain existence without doctrine than to be conned with pious nonsense, and Daniella's family inadvertently prods her into an acceptance of a more secular humanistic world-view. MUST SEE

This one was a surprise for me. I expect most foreign films to be good, but this one was really different, and make you really engage your brain. First of all, if you don't understand the language, you have to read subtitles, and there's such rapid dialogue, that you have to read fast or you'll miss out. Which means you tend to miss a bit of the visuals, but it can be done without missing too much.

As for the story, it's fascinating, and pretty disturbing, to see the lengths an evangelical family will go to try to keep their daughter from having sex. Let's just say "slut shaming" is taken to an extreme level in this family. You can feel the poor girl's angst; it's not pleasant.

This movie explores the darker side of growing up and trying to find one's place in the world. It's not for prudes or people afraid of human sexuality. 7/10 stars.

Graphic images however the strong sense of such issues are realistic