How The Garcia Girls Spent Their Summer (2005)

79% of critics liked it
(29 reviews)
41% of users liked it
(592 ratings)

Georgina Garcia Riedel's comedy How the Garcia Girls Spent Their Summer stars Lucy Gallardo, Elizabeth Peña, and America Ferrara as three generations in a family. Teenager Blanca (Ferrara) detests the boys in her small town and takes on a boyfriend from another town in the hopes that he might be… More Georgina Garcia Riedel's comedy How the Garcia Girls Spent Their Summer stars Lucy Gallardo, Elizabeth Peña, and America Ferrara as three generations in a family. Teenager Blanca (Ferrara) detests the boys in her small town and takes on a boyfriend from another town in the hopes that he might be different. Her mother, Rosa (Peña), is so sexually frustrated that she begins to put the moves on her best friend's husband, a man who has had an ongoing problem with sexual fidelity. Rosa's mother, Dona (Gallardo), embarrasses her daughter by refusing to settle down into a quiet elderly life. The 80-year-old takes driving lessons from a local gardener, although their relationship turns out to be far more. This film was screened in competition at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 2 hr. 8 min.
Directed By: Georgina Garcia Riedel, Georgina Riedel
Written By: Georgina Garcia Riedel
Genres: Drama, Comedy

In Theaters: May 16, 2008 Wide
On DVD: Aug 12, 2008
Studio: Maya Releasing

Critic Reviews

Dennis Harvey, Variety
While there are rewards to sticking with this tempest-in-teapot saga of sexual awakening across three family generations of Mexican-American women, its pacing is leisurely to the brink of stasis.
Bob Baker, Los Angeles Times
Another victory for a first-time, full-length feature filmmaker with a curious, inventive eye and an unsparing point of view.
Ruthe Stein, San Francisco Chronicle
Riedel reveals herself to be a novice filmmaker, especially in the pacing of most scenes.
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post
Like Blanca and her friends, walking languidly down the street, then spontaneousy grabbing a shopping cart for a ride, Reidel plays with the rhythm of her enjoyably unhurried tale.
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
Leisurely paced but lovely and touching.
Claudia Puig, USA Today
The film is sensitively told and appealingly bittersweet, though the story at times meanders and loses its way.
S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media
Tedious drama wastes its promise despite strong acting.
Susan Tavernetti, Palo Alto Weekly
Stylistically, the film takes risks before veering into an odd sort of studied artiness.
Prairie Miller, NewsBlaze
A tenderly spun tale of female sexual desire traversing three generations of Latina women north of the border, the movie is crafted glowingly from a woman's point of view, and with supreme sensitivity, dignity, warmth, sadness and humor.
Stan Hall, Oregonian
Pena has a great role and delivers her best performance since Lone Star in 1996.
Josh Bell, Las Vegas Weekly
A lovingly crafted portrait of a kind of life not often seen on the big screen.
Ethan Alter, Giant Magazine
Although the story is overly familiar, Riedel's evocation of small-town life rings true.
Jeanne Kaplan, Kaplan vs. Kaplan
This is a movie with wonderful, strong performances from three very talented women.
David Kaplan, Kaplan vs. Kaplan
It's a smart little film, although there are some odd cinematographic moments --- curious, at best. And at two hours plus, the movie runs at least 20 minutes too long.
Gary Brown, Houston Community Newspapers
If your taste is for movies off the beaten path, run out and see this one before it disappears.
Prairie Miller, NewsBlaze
A tenderly spun tale of female sexual desire traversing three generations of Latina women north of the border, the movie is crafted glowingly from a woman's point of view, and with supreme sensitivity, dignity, warmth, sadness and humor.
Chad Greene, Boxoffice Magazine
With the Garcia Girls, Riedel will take the right audiences someplace this summer.
Phil Villarreal, Arizona Daily Star
Riedel's film is a breakthrough achievement and a hopeful sign of more to come.

Read all 18 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Mark A

Excellent film about three generations of Latina women struggling with their sexuality. Contrary to what young people think, old people need love and comfort as well. There were moments that made this viewer cringe, (no, not the sex, which was pretty tame) and others that had me… More
Excellent film about three generations of Latina women struggling with their sexuality. Contrary to what young people think, old people need love and comfort as well. There were moments that made this viewer cringe, (no, not the sex, which was pretty tame) and others that had me laughing out loud. In this small town, everyone's secrets are well-known and the options for love are limited. But each of these women learns something about herself and about each other that just resonated for this viewer. The three lead actresses, America Ferrera (Blanca), Elizabeth Pena (Lolita), and Lucy Gallardo (Dona Geneveva) were marvelous. America is fast becoming a favorite and I am glad to see her tackling such meaty roles. She has a classic beauty that I find entrancing. A real woman, indeed.
Erin C

It was an interesting story about 3 generations of women. Gotta love AZ!
Leo L

Great movie. An interesting story plot that surrounds the everyday lives of a family of three Hispanic women: a grandmother, mother, and a granddaugther. Great cast- America Ferrera and Elizabeth Pena are phenomenal. Definitely worth seeing.