From Prada to Nada (2011)

Directed by: Angel Gracia | 102 minutes | comedy, drama, romance | Actors: Camilla Belle, Alexa Vega, Tina French, Luis Rosales, Pablo Martínez de Velasco, Alexis Ayala, Norma Reyna, Adriana Barraza, Catalina López, José María Negri, Mario Zaragoza, Pablo Cruz, April Bowlby, Nicholas D’Agosto, Begoña Narváez, Ernesto Arizpe, Diego Mejía, Bernardo Leal, Wilmer Valderrama

In ‘From Prada to Nada’ the sister Mary and Nora not only lose their father, but immediately after his death it appears that all their money is also gone. As a result, they have to live with their less fortunate aunt in a slum in East Los Angeles. Camilla Belle (‘10,000 BC’) and Alexa Vega (‘Spy Kids’) star in this lighthearted comedy, as well as ‘That 70’s Show’ famed Wilder Valderrama.

‘From Prada to Nada’ is based on the Jane Austen classic ‘Sense and Sensibilty’, but will only seem vaguely familiar to connoisseurs of this book. The core moments from the book are all incorporated in the film, but are hardly worked out, so that this story can only be recognized when you know that the film is based on this. This umpteenth twist on this classic tale is nowhere near the level of Jane Austen’s novel.

So the story is pretty thin and it’s not all very original. Nevertheless, ‘From Prada to Nada’ is still nice to watch. This is mainly because the film has its heart in the right place. Mexican culture is portrayed in a sympathetic way and – despite the fact that this is often the case in such films – there is no stereotyping. The actors are all not very well known or of the highest level, but they know how to portray their role as believable as far as the story allows. The makers just wanted to process a little too many complications in an hour and a half, so that sometimes there is a bit of jumping from one side to the other. The story ends very quickly, especially at the end.

Keep in mind when watching this film that you are watching a romantic comedy and therefore don’t expect too much originality or a realistic story: ‘From Prada to Nada’ is a great movie to watch on a rainy Sunday afternoon. After watching it you will immediately forget it, but that is sometimes not bad at all.