A middle-aged Mexican massage therapist by chance gets to join a fancy dinner hosted by one of her wealthiest clients, in which the guest of honor is a smug business mogul, who looks down on almost anyone he crosses paths with. John Lithgow is appropriately off-putting in the role of a Trump-esque megalomaniac. Salma Hayek is startling eloquent as the ordinary woman who came from nothing.
The biggest issue with this film is that the female protagonist doesn't quite make sense in the totality of the story. One minute, she's Susan B. Anthony, next minute, she's Sylvia Plath. The film would have us believe that her despair and lack of exposure to this dark side of the world makes her a tragic figure, but in my opinion, it's an unconvincing character arc. A woman this strong does not bend when faced with the shallow and bleak soullessness of middle-aged white America. But that's what we're being led to believe. Recommended even with my disagreements.
The biggest issue with this film is that the female protagonist doesn't quite make sense in the totality of the story. One minute, she's Susan B. Anthony, next minute, she's Sylvia Plath. The film would have us believe that her despair and lack of exposure to this dark side of the world makes her a tragic figure, but in my opinion, it's an unconvincing character arc. A woman this strong does not bend when faced with the shallow and bleak soullessness of middle-aged white America. But that's what we're being led to believe. Recommended even with my disagreements.