Popi

Abraham Rodriguez (Alan Arkin) is Popi to his two young sons. The boys' mother is dead. The three of them and his girlfriend Lupe (Rita Moreno) live in the slums. He struggles with various odd jobs and surviving day to day. He notices that the new Cuban refugees have much better lives and comes up with a crazy idea.

I like the idea of the premise. I like the location. I don't like Abraham. I get that this is a satirical comedy. It has moments of humor. I never really get to like Abraham. I need him to show more love to his kids and his girlfriend. I get the idea of running after those neighbor kids is him worrying about his sons turning wild. It needs some setting up. The only time when that love is front and center is when the boys are out in the water. That is the best. Aside from that, Arkin is no Latino. Maybe he can pass but I know he's faking. Back in the day, it's business as usual. All in all, I like the originality of the premise more than the execution.

Alan Arkin is in good form as Abraham, nicknamed "Popi", a Puerto Rican widower in New York's Spanish Harlem who works several different jobs to provide for himself and his two pre-teen boys; he also has the occasional roll in the hay with a tootsie, played by Rita Moreno (to show us, I guess, that Popi is a man with needs--why else is she there?). Character piece from screenwriters Tina and Lester Pine is rather an undemanding showcase for Arkin's talents; he doesn't exactly tone down his manic personality, but he's lukewarm here: likable throughout and a convincing dad to the kids. It's to Arkin's credit that, even when director Arthur Hiller resorts to that hoary device of having a screen character break the fourth wall to address us directly, the actor never becomes intolerable. The film has interesting slum-neighborhood atmospherics, but Hiller isn't concerned with realism and never gets his hands dirty. Take for example the opening credits sequence, which has the two boys leaping and playing in slow-motion in a cemetery--just after visiting their mother's grave. Arkin received a Best Actor-Drama nomination from the Hollywood Foreign Press; Tina Pine and Lester Pine's script was nominated by the WGA for Best Comedy Written Directly for the Screen. ** from ****

This is my favorite acting performance of the always underrated Alan Arkin. He plays a widowed father of two young boys in Spanish Harlem who works numerous jobs and will do anything - ANYTHING - to provide a better life for his two young boys. There is no job he will not take and no sacrifice he will not make for his boys. The method Arkin finally decides to take is controversial. How? Let's just say that during the whole Elian Gonzalez saga, quite a few references were made to this movie. (PLEASE don't let that comparison turn you off to this movie - I cringed at those comparisons as well at first until I realized that yes, the comparisons had a valid point.) This movie is very much a drama, but Arkin, in his magical way, manages to not detract from the drama while injecting his own brand of physical comedy as well as his patented panicking dialogue (such as in the hospital scene.) The two young boys, who lived in Spanish Harlem when they were selected to act in this movie, are very good as well.

I loved Alan Arkin in "The Inlaws", but here he plays a completely different part. In POPI, he is a widowed Puerto Rican father "Abraham" who can't wait to get his young sons out of Harlem. The sons are played by Reuben Figueroa and Miguel Alejandro; the actors playing the sons appeared in just a couple more projects after this one. The film opens with them attending the funeral in New York City. Then we meet the girlfriend, Lupe, (a 38 year old Rita Moreno, with long hair!). We see them trying to survive in the rough city neighborhood, working three jobs. His roof leaks, they try to break into his shabby apartment, but when they pick on his kids, he comes up with a plan to get away from it all. As of today, IMDb has this film rated as "G", but when Turner Classics showed it, it's listed "TV 14". There is some violence, at 23 minutes in. Also, at one point, Arkin turns and talks to the camera, which felt a little out of place at that point in the film. The first half is the setup, showing us how bad things are in the city, but the second half is the big adventure, which almost turns into a farce. A pretty-good, entertaining film, with some small tidbits of humor thrown in here and there. According to IMDb, this film was shown on NBC in 1977... they must have edited some of the scenes out to make it safe for TV. Directed by Arthur Hiller, who would direct Arkin ten years later in "The Inlaws". In 1976, it was made into a TV series for CBS, starring Hector Elizondo, but it looks like it only lasted one season.

Alan Arkin, especially in the 60's and 70's, was one of our best actors and in this average but interesting movie he plays a Puerto Rican father with two young sons and he's totally on the mark! Rita Moreno is wonderful as always. The two young boys gave believable performances.

A 5 out of 10. Best performance = Alan Arkin. Arthur Hiller was a pretty average director (except for THE HOSPITAL). The film never really takes off like it should but it's pleasant entertainment and Arkin works wonders as a caring father with few prospects of a better life. Another wonderful character in Arkin's gallery! Another semi-interesting New York tale of survival.