Sólo Con Tu Pareja (1991)

64% of critics liked it
(11 reviews)
71% of users liked it
(2,521 ratings)

Tomas is a very busy fellow and is about to grow much, much busier. He has his current girlfriend in bed in one apartment, and his lady boss in bed in the next one, and is crossing from one to the other on a window ledge. Neither one has figured out what he is up to. His juggling act becomes much… More Tomas is a very busy fellow and is about to grow much, much busier. He has his current girlfriend in bed in one apartment, and his lady boss in bed in the next one, and is crossing from one to the other on a window ledge. Neither one has figured out what he is up to. His juggling act becomes much more complicated when, on one occasion from the ledge between the two apartments he spots his pretty new neighbor. It's only a matter of time before one or all of these women gives him his richly deserved comeuppance. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 30 min.
Directed By: Alfonso Cuarón
Written By: Alfonso Cuarón, Carlos Cuarón
Genres: Drama, Art House & International, Comedy

In Theaters: Sep 9, 1991 Wide
On DVD: Sep 20, 2006
Studio: IFC First Take

Critic Reviews

Jan Stuart, Newsday
First released in 1991, Alfonso Cuaron's Solo Con Tu Pareja (Only With Your Partner) is a manic puff of nonsense that plays off the AIDS panic of the preceding decade.
V.A. Musetto, New York Post
Solo Con Tu Pareja is not as mature as Y Tu Mama Tambien, but it is consistently funny.
A.O. Scott, New York Times
Like Y Tu Mamá También, Alfonso Cuaróns first feature, made 15 years ago, is a rambunctious sex comedy shadowed by mortality.
Michael Atkinson, Village Voice
Pushing the dull Cacho as a chick magnet capable of opening any pair of legs suggests that Cuarón's respect for women has gained serious ground since he was 29.
Eric Monder, Film Journal International
It is hard to fathom how such a talented artist could come up with such a painfully unfunny comedy.
James Kendrick, Q Network Film Desk
a semi-successful attempt to update the screwball comedy in the era of AIDS and telenovelas
Marta Barber, Miami Herald
Cuaron demonstrates his capacity as a director. The camera work is impressive, his sense of humor sharp, and the characters are well defined.
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid
Sets a tone for Cuaron's later work, including a warm, sensual use of colors and space.
Christopher Null, Filmcritic.com
Getting past the sheer unlikeability of the main character proves to be the film's most difficult point.
Maitland McDonagh, TV Guide's Movie Guide
Cuaron, who cowrote the screenplay with his brother, Carlos, cited Ernst Lubitsch and Woody Allen as influences, but the shadow of Pedro Almodovar's frantic early comedies hangs heavily over the film's farcical complications.
Ed Gonzalez, Slant Magazine
The film is like a champagne bottle's ricocheting cork: an explosion of poppy camera maneuvers, literary allusions, chatty reiterations, raunchy sex, and spastic flights of fantasy rich in cultural flavor.

Read all 11 critic reviews

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Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

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Featured Audience Ratings

Lorenzo v

"Pick a peck of pickled pepper..." Young yuppie and womanizer Tomas (Gimenez Cacho) is caught in a trap when falsely diagnosed with AIDS by Silvia (Liubomirova), a nurse who finds herself cheated by the young Casanova. <center>"Pick a peck of pickled pepper..." Young yuppie and womanizer Tomas (Gimenez Cacho) is caught in a trap when falsely diagnosed with AIDS by Silvia (Liubomirova), a nurse who finds herself cheated by the young Casanova. <center>REVIEW</center> Tomas Tomas is an enthusiastic playboy adamant about not using condoms. When a scorned fling is put in a situation perfect for payback, she falsely marks his AIDS test positive, setting him off on a darkly comic quest to kill himself, but not before the love of his life finds out her husband is cheating on her and decides to end her own life as well. Tomas takes this opportunity to take her with him into death, as the one woman in his life, as far as we know, that he has a shred of respect for. This is revealed as he makes a list of the women he's slept with, laughing as he remembers their nick names, not necessarily even their real ones. Visually, this film marks a point before Cuaron adopted his now staple handicam cinematography. The shots are graceful and smooth, the editing the same. It was gorgeous, with more than one shot inserted solely for the composition (off the top of my head, the vial of Tomas' blood filling up in front of a black background, though the room was white) At more than one time I felt like pausing the film just to take in the images. While it marks a step toward what he will become, Solo Con Tu Pareja is a much more accessible and enjoyable film than the challenging ones that Cuaron eventually becomes known for. As a ribald comedy it succeeds, and it may be due to it's not trying to be. I'm not saying it's trying to be popcorn, but it also doesn't strive to change lives.
Fernando Rafael Q

Good dark comedy. Alfonso Cuarón's first film shows raw talent, that he would later polish in the awesome Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN and the masterpiece CHILDREN OF MEN. The script is sharp and very funny, presenting a great original story. The camera work is impressive, as well as the… More
Good dark comedy. Alfonso Cuarón's first film shows raw talent, that he would later polish in the awesome Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN and the masterpiece CHILDREN OF MEN. The script is sharp and very funny, presenting a great original story. The camera work is impressive, as well as the exterior shots. Daniel Giménez Cacho, one of Mexico's finest actors, is incredible here. My only complaint is the climax. It seemed as if the movie resolved itself too quickly, and the characters were driven to suicide by something that happened only moments before. The style and comedic tone reminded me a little of early Almodóvar.
Lenny M

Interesting, quirky film that uses Mexico City's surroundings well.
Wu C

A fine first film by Alfonso Cuarón and you can see his talent throughout this oddball comedy.
Quinto W

The films is funny all the time, but sometimes that's just all that it is. Still, it's a nice black farce that at times reminded me of Almodóvar.
Tom S

Pretty fantastic dream sequence in the middle.