There is one movie theater in Downtown Zihuatanejo. CINE PARAISO, on the pedestrian walk at the corner of Nicolas Bravo and Cuauhtemoc. Movies change weekly, usually on Thursdays or Fridays, show times are roughly 4:30, 6:30 and 8:30 (give or take ½ an hour) with matinees on the weekends.
A new movie theater just opened in Ixtapa, located in the shopping area behind Señor Frogs, next to Nueva Zelandia. It is a familiarly modern facility that airs first run films. There are also several video rental stores in the Ixtapa – Zihuatanejo area that sometimes get movies before they even make it to the big screen here. Wander through a few of them, you might be surprised at what you can find, for rent as well as for sell. With the exceptions of National Productions and animations, almost all of the films here are in English with Spanish subtitles.
I was extremely curious to see what Doug Liman, the director of Swingers would do for a follow up to that underground hit. And to my surprise, he didn’t succumb to the pressures of Hollywood and churn out some big budget, megastar vehicle. Instead he stayed true to form and came out with another hit, Go.
Go has been compared to Pulp Fiction in the sense that it isn’t written in a linear fashion. In other words, you have to pay attention or you might get lost. It is broken down into four stories, all occurring simultaneously among a group of friends. But all the stories intertwine, making you realize after finishing the movie, just how clever and well written it really is.
The cast includes faces you may recognize but will have trouble placing. Katie Holmes (of television’s Dawson Creek), Scott Wolf (TV’s Party of Five) and Jay Mohr (formerly of Saturday Night Live) head up a relatively unknown cast of talented young actors. The title, Go, should tell you this is a fast-paced film guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your hammock. Available at most video stores in Zihuatanejo or Ixtapa.
-December 1999
