"Mad Bills To Pay" A-List pocket Review

Well after a week away at sea, I was eager to resume some movie viewing, and this film seemed like it could be interesting. "Mad Bills To Pay" is presented mostly in English, but there are some scenes in Spanish, and those have subtitles.

Anyway, Rico is a 19-year old Hispanic man living in the Bronx with his overworked mother and mercurial younger sister. He passes his time hanging out on the streets, and peddling homemade cocktail concoctions at the local beach while trying to dodge beach patrols. The home situation is stressed by poverty and arguments are frequent. Then, a girlfriend enters the picture, and more drama ensues.

Well, I liked this movie more than I suspected I would. The director obviously has a feel for life in the Dominican community in the Bronx, and so we get a pretty deeply-felt slice of life movie to watch. The characters seem real and so we care about their trials and tribulations, trying to get by under tough conditions. The movie doesn't sugar coat life on this terrain, and if you are looking for happy endings you will be disappointed. But I was engaged throughout.

B ... above average Hispanic-American movie, recommended.