Chico & Rita

An old-fashioned romance is at the heart of this Oscar-nominated animated tale of long-unrequited love that is told against the backdrop of 20th-century Cuban history. Pianist-composer Chico (voiced by Emar Xor Oña) and sultry singer Rita (Limara Meneses) meet in Havana during the swinging 1940s and become a couple, both onstage at the Tropicana and back in his flat. But Chico's womanizing leads her to dump him and head for New York, where she winds up becoming a major star. Following the Castro revolution, Chico also comes to the U.S., but is deported on trumped-up drug charges, while Rita's career eventually takes a nosedive when she publically denounces segregationist policies in America. The pair's interlocked stories are told in flashback from the perspective of the aged Chico, who is rediscovered and brought back into the limelight by admirers of his old recordings. Chico's newfound fame leads to a tour—eventually stopping at Las Vegas, where he was supposed to meet Rita decades earlier but was prevented by his arrest. Co-directed by Tono Errando, Javier Mariscal, and Fernando Trueba, Chico & Rita is a soapy story that has the feel of a Hollywood studio movie from the '40s or ‘50s. The stellar soundtrack mingles old songs with new ones composed in the period style by Bebo Valdés (and played with feeling), but the animation, which looks rotoscoped, is disappointingly unattractive. A charming exercise in musical nostalgia, undermined by lackluster visuals, this is a strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by filmmakers Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal, a “making-of” featurette (29 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray edition are a bonus audio CD of the soundtrack, a 16-page excerpt from the graphic novel, and a bonus DVD copy of the film. Bottom line: a fine extras package for this uneven animated Oscar nominee.] (F. Swietek)