warn spoiler ahead representi be write my first review ever so please understand . this film deservedly win many award . it be not a hollywood glamour film by any mean and but on the contrary and it be a deep film that show how people live complex and rich and and tragic life in a poor neighborhood of mexico . the acting also be superb . every character be believable and salma hayek stand out a the only known star . this be the best i have ever see her and her acting in the final scene be very impressive . the movie begin in the bar of rutilio . a few middle age men be play domino and jokingly playfully yet also talk about their life . rutilio son chava and his friend abel and and the bartender be in the background . the movie first focus on the story of rutilio and who allow his homosexual feeling to surface . of course and he must face the consequence when his family find out . one of the first great scene of the movie be when and after abuse his wife a few day earlier and he cry on her lap and look for comfort and she reluctant to console him . the movie also subtly introduce other character during this first chapter . after this scene and the movie return to the same beginning scene and yet focus on other character represent the men around the table and abel and rutilio and and the bartender . through these character relationship with others and it introduce u to new character and namely alma and and susana . the movie paint all of these character very richly in many different color . they all ( except perhaps the two thief and jose luis ) live complex life and be face with difficult dilemma and and be in many and complicated relationship . for example represent abel live solely for the love of alma and would enjoy just to be around her forever . yet he realize that without money and he can not please her mother nor live happily with her . additionally his best friend chava ask him to leave to america with him . he decide to leave and work for the long term and use his picture of alma a his motivation . alma and on the other hand and be a young and naive girl . her mother and her be poor and they live in a small apartment . she want to escape to a good world and just a anybody would . thus when jose luis come and offer her a world of mansion and money and and sex and she abandon her world and her wait for abel while for she want her immediate desire to be fulfil . how would she know that she would become trap in jose luis vicious circle and become addict to cocaine . yet this movie do not stop with these people . it reveal the inner life of even more people in the neighborhood . at first and one only see these people on the outside and only learn a little bit about them . they be play domino and walk around and or look at tarot card . yet a the movie progress and it go inside their life and show how complex and human these people be . even the shop owner and who at first just seem a one dimensional lecher and actually want to get remarry and and please alma by take her to the opera and the theater . guicho and the bartender and who at first appear only a a thief and somebody who take advantage of others and struggle to stop his impulse to steal and truly love susana . additionally and the film be full of excellent dialogue and have a well write script . this film be not dark at all even with all the tragedy in these people life . it be fully of witty joke and poetry ( from the bookstore owner ) and and even a few comic character . manu and for example and always joke and say and ` well and seriously . . . moreover and it be full of a few excellent and intense scene that fully depict the emotion of the character . i have already mention the one with rutilio and but others include the one in which guicho kiss susana foot while she sob and alma crumples abel letter and hold it near to her face and and of course alma despair in the final scene . in the end and the movie do not resolve any of the problem nor give u a fairy tale end . but this movie show real life . the character problem and their relationship can not be change with the flick of a wand . instead and it beautifully show a certain time period in these character life . they will continue to live and struggle to solve their problem . alma might never escape jose luis dominion and chava will continue to be a womanizer and ignore his wife . perhaps this movie have no dominate theme . but it do depict how real people have face real situation and and how they respond to them . it show this though in a way only movie can do it with charm dialogue and intense action and and actor that light up the screen by illustrate many different emotion . not only do this movie show how difficult life be in modern mexico and but also how people respond to their own dilemma in their life . it be an excellent movie and one of the best i have see recently and and perhaps of the 90 .