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Raising Victor Vargas
by Ed Johnson-Ott May 14, 2003

(R) 4 stars

Every so often a film comes along that perfectly observes the human condition. Funny, sweet, rude, sad and rambunctious, Raising Victor Vargas is one of those movies. First-time feature writer/director Peter Sollett has crafted an 88-minute wonder, a film that perfectly illustrates the fragility of machismo, the politics of brothers and sisters and the give and take of young romance. He understands that a family unit is an entity unto itself. He recognizes the tendency of the very young and the very old to become self-absorbed to the point where their personal dramas are the biggest in the world. He understands pride.

And he is smart enough to present all of that without making a big fuss. Sixteen-year-old Victor Vargas (Victor Rasuk) has met an angel at a local community swimming pool in New York’s Lower East Side. Victor and his best pal Harold (Kevin Rivera) try their finest lines on the lovely Judy (Judy Marte) and her best friend Melonie (Melonie Diaz), but the girls make it clear they are not interested. Well, actually, Melonie is attracted to Harold, but when Judy gives Victor the brush-off, she does the same, just out of loyalty. Victor is not one to give up, though, seeking out Judy’s little brother to arrange a more formal introduction. Of course, the kid wants a return favor — an introduction to Victor’s little sister, Vicky (Krystal Rodriguez). Victor, Vicky and their brother Nino (Sylkvestre Rasuk) live in a small apartment with their Old World grandmother (Altagarcia Guzman). The small gray-haired woman watches the children carefully. She knows that Vicky is a good girl, Nino is a good boy with a gift for playing keyboards and she suspects Victor may be the son of Satan. When Nino asks Victor to teach him about women, his brother tries, despite the fact that he doesn’t know the answers. Judy, softening to his advances, may be able to help, if their relationship is able to grow. That may be a problem, because Grandmother has seen Victor with Judy, and overheard him tutoring Nino, and she has decided the only way to save the family is to do something about Victor and his wicked ways. With most families, there comes a time when the children and the parents (or parental figures) must renegotiate the terms of their relationships. If successful, the family enters a new era. But if negotiations fail, the family unit slowly begins to wither and die. That moment comes in Raising Victor Vargas and Peter Sollett handles it as surely as every other aspect of the film. The casting here is so dead-on that it almost feels as if one was watching a documentary. Indeed, Rasuk and Marte appeared in Sollett’s debut short, Five Feet High and Rising. When he assembled the cast for this film, he noticed changes in the boy and girl and adjusted their characters accordingly. Watching them is a treat, as is watching the desperate machinations of Grandmother’s mind. Feisty, but loving, determined yet unsure, she is a powerful force. Raising Victor Vargas would be welcome anytime, but it is especially nice to see it arrive now, as the big summer movies begin filling cineplex screens. Those who make room for it are in for 88 minutes of pure quality.

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