SYNOPSICS
East Side Story (2006) is a English,Spanish movie. Carlos Portugal has directed this movie. René Alvarado,David Berón,Gladise Jiminez,Steve Callahan are the starring of this movie. It was released in 2006. East Side Story (2006) is considered one of the best Comedy,Romance movie in India and around the world.
East Side Story is the story of Diego (René Alvarado), a young, closeted Latino, who helps his grandmother (Irene DeBari) run the family restaurant while carrying on a relationship with equally closeted Pablo (David Berón). Diego has long felt trapped by the conservative culture of East LA and plans to move away and open an upscale restaurant, hopefully with his lover, but Pablo views their relationship very differently - a point driven home when he begins dating Diego's Aunt Bianca (Gladise Jimenez). At the same time, Wesley and his boyfriend move in, gentrifying the neighborhood. The attraction between Wesley and Diego is immediate and electric, forcing both men to reexamine their state of affairs.
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East Side Story (2006) Reviews
What a Way to Break Into Film! Great Date Movie!
Very enjoyable, well-acted, well-scripted romantic movie! It's hard to believe this is Mr. Portugal's debut film. It doesn't hurt that the movie is chock-full of really cute actors, with enough shirtless scenes and quick rump shots that titillate. ;) Great characters--almost all the main characters were fully developed. Unlike many gay films, some female characters were given genuine roles and they soared with them. There was definitely a chemistry between ALL of the actors and the movie flowed very well. Standout performances by René Alvarado as Diego and Irene DeBarri as his grandmother. This is the best film I have seen so far this year at New Fest in NYC.
A Classy New Coming Out Film with Emphasis on the East LA Community
Fresh young talent and a healthy dollop of enthusiasm serve as the springboard of this well written (Carlos Portugal and Charo Toledo), well directed (Carlos Portugal) and well acted exuberant story of those once perceived tightly closet doors of the East Los Angeles Hispanic community. Not that this is the first film to engage the topic of being gay in East LA - QUINCEAÑERA is another superb film on the subject - but it addresses so many other aspects of family and social life happening now that it deserves a wide audience. With a cast of newcomers coupled with some very fine veterans of the screen EAST SIDE STORY comes to life in a highly entertaining fashion. Closeted schooled chef Diego Campos (a fine debut by René Alvarado) works as a waiter in his grandmother Sara's (elegant Irene DeBari) little Mexican restaurant where grumpy homophobic chef Don Rogelio (Luis Accinelli) presides in the kitchen. Diego dreams of opening his own restaurant but family ties keep him grounded. Diego's campy Aunt Bianca (Gladise Jimenez) returns from Monaco on one of her many expensive sojourns to find a man and changes begin to happen. Diego's equally closeted boyfriend Pablo Morales (David Berón) has been refusing to settle down in a relationship with Diego, claiming that the union is a 'passing fancy'. When Bianca enters, Pablo's attentions turn to the sexy lady and Diego is brokenhearted. Into this mélange enters a white gay couple who buy a 'flip' house across the street, a signal to the neighborhood that gentrification is just around the corner. The couple - Wesley (Steve Callahan) and Jonathan (Cory Schneider) - meet the morose Diego and a match strikes between Diego and Wesley. Jonathan is assigned all the lines having to do with prejudice and is the one who wants out of the neighborhood as soon as their house is enhanced and their gay friends begin to visit. The white couple move apart and Wesley and Diego begin a courtship dance that is encouraged by Diego's family. How Diego handles his loss of Pablo to his Aunt Bianca and copes with the possibility of being open with Wesley forms the story line. It is all the hilarious and not so hilarious sidebars that share the space of the 'outing' that make the film so personal and successful. Carlos Portugal is clearly a talent to watch, as are his attractive and talented cast members. EAST SIDE STORY is a fine companion piece to QUINCEAÑERA and should enjoy the same degree of popularity for all the same reasons! Grady Harp
Excellent - Just Not Incredibly So
This is a very technically well-made film with good pacing and overall good acting, with standout performances from the main females and most of the main male actors. The main problem with the film is the extent to which is borrows from stereotypical sitcom television conventions, down to the nicely packaged happy ending. Boy meets closeted boy, boy dumps closeted boy, boy meets new gay couple on block, one half of the gay couple cheats on partner with boy, purely dramatic devices causes a break-up (which in typical television fashion, the couple didn't actually belong together - not the like the boy and cheating partner do), till finally, again true to TV conventions, all is resolved and happily so, that by the time the end title credits roll, boy ends up with the right half of the couple. Don't get me wrong, it's a well-made film with some excellent performances. It's definitely a crowd-pleaser and it's sure to be enjoyed by nearly any gay-identified audience member who views it. Apparently, the distributors didn't see any cross-over appeal as the movie seems to be headed to a DVD release without even a cursory theatrical release in some of the major markets where it did not make into (or which do not have) a gay and lesbian film festival. Definitely worth renting, once the DVD is released, apparently in the next few months, and perhaps even owning. However, comparing this to Brokeback Mountain is definitely not appropriate.
Best LGBT-focused story in film we've seen in the past couple of years
My partner & I saw "East Side Story" at NYC's NewFest in June 2006. The movie is a well constructed take-off on the Italian-Puerto Rican ethnic conflict in the musical "West Side Story". Instead of the historical focus on those two ethnic groups in NYC, ESS dramatizes the current fault line between middle class Latino residents in LA's Echo Park neighborhood and well-off gays & lesbians who are buying up their homes, gentrifying their area, and threatening to displace them. The specific characters and basic storyline are believable and the movie entertains you throughout the movie. Of the 15 or so films we screened at that NYC LGBT festival last year & this month, "East Side Story" was by far our favorite (We also liked "Forgiving the Franklins", "Coffee Date", "Outing Riley" and "Bubble", a gripping but HEAVY film by the Israeli director of "Yossi & Jagger".). Question: does anyone have an idea of when / if "East Side Story" will appear in (art) theaters OR be released on DVD? We'd really like to see it again and, if possible, purchase a copy. If not, I'll contact the NewFest organizers to see if they can answer this question.
This is a great Sunday evening movie
I just finished watching this movie and I have to say; I really enjoyed it. The whole cast is great. The acting from the sexy Rene Alvarado who plays Diego Campos to the crazy and lots of drama aunt Bianca Campos played by Gladise Jimernez is simply incredible. Irene De Bari who plays Sara Campos truly plays a latina grandmother. I really admire the way the Director Carlos Portugal has brought together many issues how people in our own latino community feel about outside economic infusion, minorities and gays. I can only hope that this is not Carlos Portugal last film. I wish him luck in finding new and refreshing material to turn into great movies like this one. I want everyone can see East Side Story. It is a great film.