Back in 1987 while I was still a young one, my then brother in law was extremely excited about a new movie being released called La Bamba. It turned out that one of his high school buddies Lou Phillips ( aka Lou “Diamond” Phillips) landed the lead role on what would become one of his most popular movies so far. During that period, I personally had no desire to see a movie about a 1950s singer that I had never even heard of before.
However, my brother in law’s enthusiasm permeated throughout the entire family, and I caught myself getting into the hype as well. I first watched La Bamba in a local movie theatre in Texas in 1987, and since then have watched this movie over and over at least a dozen times.
La Bamba is based on a true story revolving around the life of Ricky Ricardo Valenzuela, also known as Ritchie Valens (however his given birth name was Richard Stephen Valenzuela). The movie begins in early 1958, with Ritchie (played by Lou Diamond Phillips) at the age of 16 .His younger days are only briefly mentioned throughout the movie through conversations about his late father.
At 16, Ritchie is living with his mother and other families in a small and extremely poor Mexican community in Paicoma, California. Ritchie makes ends meet by picking and loading oranges. Ritchie’s old brother Bob (played by Esai Morales), is fresh out of jail and returns to remove his family from the dump that they are living in. Connie (played by Rosanna DeSoto) who is the mother of Bob and Ritchie, initially refuses Bob’s invite, claiming that the large stash of money he is flashing around is not clean money.
It is made known early on that Bob has led a less than perfect life. Nevertheless, the family decides to pack up and move to Riverside,California with Bob in hopes for a better life. A young girl named Rosie (played by Elizabeth Pena) also comes along after meeting and getting acquainted with Bob.
Once in Riverside, life for Ritchie’s family isn’t much better from what they left. Bob drinks constantly, Connie works as a full time waitress, and Rosie is left to care for the younger sisters in the family all day. One person that seems quite happy however, is Ritchie.
His dreams are of pure rock and roll and he just knows that he is destined to be a star no matter what. He carries his guitar and garage sale amp wherever he goes, and finally runs into luck when a friend Chino (played by Eddie Frias) invites him to audition for a local band. Ritchie does so well at this audition that there is more than a bit of resentment from the band leader named Rudy (played by Geoffry Rivas). He is still given a part in a the band, but because of the threat felt by Rudy, he is never truly allowed to let his talent shine.
Connie, being Ritchie’s biggest fan, uses her connections from her late husband to land Ritchie a few solo gigs and then a night for himself and his band at American Legion. Ritchie finally gets a chance to shine and show his true talent at the American Legion. His girlfiend Donna (played by Danielle Von Zerneck) finally gets a chance to see Ritchie perform after countless attempts of trying to get permission from her overbearing father.
The same night, a manager and president of Del Fi records by the name of Bob Keene (played by Joe Pantoliano) discovers Ritchie. Now Ritchie has finally gotten the break that he has always dreamed of. Bob Keene eventually signs Ritchie on with Del Fi records, and Ritchie immediately starts putting out hit singles. His most famous hits include Come on, Let’s Go Donna, and of course La Bamba.
It is also during this time that Ritchie’s name is changed from Valenzuela to Valens so that he can be marketed better. Life gets better and better for Ritchie. He appears on radio stations, he has an appearance on the Grand Band Stand, and his few songs are all hits. Donna, who has been controlled so far by her overbearing father, finally breaks away and lets Ritchie know that no one will stop her from being with him again. Ritchie also buys his mother a new house.
The one thing that is keeping Ritchie from being truly happy is his brother Bob. Although the two are close (even taking the town in Mexico together one night), Bob is extremely jealous of Ritchie’s success and feels Connie has always given special treatment to Ritchie. There are bitter arguments between the two, even a fist fight. That being said, the two brothers who clearly love each other dearly always seem to reunite and remain close.
Ritchie, now very successful, has plans to appear in a concert alongside such greats as the Big Bopper and Buddy Holly. Throughout the entire movie, we see inside Ritchie’s nightmares as he dreams of plane crashes constantly. He told his manager Bob Keene several times that he would never fly, but flying would have to be a necessity in order to get to the concert in the mid west in time.
After the concert, and with the luck of winning a coin toss, Ritchie boards on a small airplane with the Big Bopper and Buddy Holly. The flip of that one coin decides Ritchie’s fate. Somewhere between 1 a.m. and 9 a.m. the plane crashed, killing everyone on board. The day will always be remembered as the day the music died ( February 3rd, 1959).
Main Characters
Lou Diamond Phillips plays the main role of Ritchie Valens. This was Lou’s first major movie. He did an excellent job portraying a young Ritchie. His guitar playing and singing were right on cue. If I didn’t know any better I would have thought that Lou actually did sing all the songs ( Los Lobos actually sang all the Ritchie Valens songs).
Lou does such a good job that I ended up really caring for the character and truly believing in everything about him. The ending was truly heartbreaking as I felt that I was really experiencing the death of a superstar as if I were there in that era. Lou did an amazing performance throughout the entire movie. The only thing that didn’t really seem in place to me was Lou’s accent. While the other members in Ritchie’s family have a thick hispanic accent, Lou it seems didn’t even attempt to have one.
Although Esai Morales was not new to movies (he had previously starred in Bad Boys and The Principle, among others), this is the one movie that I will always remember Esai from. Playing Bob Morales, Esai was hands down the absolute best actor in the film. La Bamba just would not have been the same without Esai’s performance.
Although Bob was an alcoholic and did things that weren’t likable, Esai made me feel for him as he effortlessly (it seems) cried on cue and then did anything he could to help his little brother out (when he was not jealous that is). I don’t understand why this guy was not at least nominated for some sort of award for his performance, because it was definitely award worthy.
Danielle Von Zerneck played the part of Donna Ludwig ( Ritchie’s girl and inspiration for the song Donna). Before La Bamba Danielle had made various appearance on t.v. shows and made for t.v. movies. I really was not too impressed with Danielle’s performance.
She tends to overact in my opinion, and the crying scenes seem a bit forced. Even though her role was not as big as the Lou’s or Esai’s, I feel that her performance as Donna was mediocre at best. However, from looking at the pictures of the real Donna, there is a striking resemblance.
Rosana plays the role of Ritchie’s supportive mother, Connie. Once again, another fine acting performance. Her chemistry with Lou Diamond Phillips, along with everyone else who has scenes with her is immaculate. Her accent all the way down to the way she dresses and moves, made her role as Connie extremely believable.
The crying scenes seemed so real that I truly thought she was actually in the situation. The rest of the cast didn’t really have a huge role, but all did a remarkable job. Joe Pantoliano could not have done a better job as Ritchie’s manager, and there was once again great chemistry between him and the other actors ( especially Lou Diamond Phillips).
My final Thoughts
Although many may disagree, I feel like this movie is a true classic. There are times where the movie made me want to jump up and cheer, and then times when the movie was sad that I could not stop myself crying. I still get this effect every time I watch the movie. The movie was directed and written by Luis Valdez, who is acknowledged as the founder for Chicano theatre and film.
Valdez has written and produced several t.v. movies and shows, but La Bamba was his first film (aside from a major flop called Zoot). He has done an amazing job with his film, and I really wish he would put some more like this out there. I really cannot say enough about this movie.
It seems to put you right there in that era and lets you truly feel for all the characters involved. You don’t have to be a Ritchie Valens fan to truly enjoy this film. I had never even heard of the late Ritchie Valens, but this movie is now one of my favorites. Elizabeth Pena pulled off fight scenes and crying scenes at ease. She is another actress that made me feel like she was truly in her difficult situations.
Other Information
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested) Format: Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby Region Code: 1 Release Date: April 02, 2002 Running Time: 109 minutes Studio: Columbia/Tristar Studios Theatrical Release Date: July 24, 1987
The La Bamba Soundtrack
1) La Bamba: Los Lobos 2) Come On, Let’s Go: Los Lobos 3) Ooh! My Head!: Los Lobos 4) We Belong Together: Los Lobos 5) Framed: Los Lobos 6) Donna: Los Lobos 7) Lonely Teardrops: Howard Huntsberry 8) Crying, Waiting, Hoping: Marshall Crenshaw 9) Summertime Blues: Brian Setzer 10) Who do You Love?: Bo Diddley 11) Charlena: Los Lobos 12) Goodnight My Love: Los Lobos
Label: Warner Brothers
Release Date: 06/30/1987
