Fast-paced ‘Rudo’ aims high, scores

Mexico has had its share of debilitating transnational news lately, but the arrival of the puckishly entertaining, fleet-of-foot drama-comedy “Rudo y Cursi” deserves a hearty welcome. The story of close-but-competitive brothers seeking personal glory in professional soccer, it marks the directorial debut of Alfonso Cuaron’s younger brother Carlos -- the pair wrote (and Alfonso directed) the nimbly sexy “Y Tu Mama Tambien” -- and reveals a family steeped in filmmaking talent.

On-screen, however, it’s the twin gifts of goal-scoring and goalkeeping that connects village siblings Beto (Diego Luna) -- whose hard-edged personality earns him the sobriquet “Rudo” (or “tough”) -- and Tato (Gael Garcia Bernal), nicknamed “Cursi” (“corny”) for his open-hearted playing style. When a talent scout named Batuta (Guillermo Francella) plucks them from the plantation to turn them into Mexico City soccer stars, the brothers’ rags-to-riches trajectory -- narrated with sober wisdom by Batuta -- opens the door for their weaknesses to flourish as well. Husband and father Beto starts gambling more, while starry-eyed Tato -- seduced by the trappings of fame -- harbors a delusional belief that he’s better at singing than he is.

“Rudo y Cursi” pulses with life, albeit the predestined kind. Cuaron treats Beto and Tato like pawns in an opportunity farce and gets plenty of funny-tragic mileage from twists of fate both corrupt and accidental. If “Y Tu Mama Tambien” (also with Luna and Bernal) was the sex-and-death road movie from the sheltered city to the existential sea, Cuaron clearly sees his own modest saga as something more openly satirical about contemporary Mexico: a kind of travelogue of ambition and loserdom, from the rural clarity of a dirt pitch to the dangerous allure of the literal and figurative green.

The gusto-driven performances of the stars are major pluses too, with Luna’s prickly energy and Bernal’s cluelessness meshing together like a modern-day comedy team. Paced like lightning, “Rudo y Cursi” covers so much in its rollicking chronicle of fame and flameout that it may seem odd that Cuaron stops short of dramatizing the brothers’ wildly praised athletic exploits. But that’s for any old sports flick, the director seems to say. He’s much more interested in the kick that meets a backside, or the bat-away that derails a dream. Because as Cuaron’s enjoyable film about brotherhood and the beautiful game zestfully points out, a block and a save are two sides of the same play.--

‘Rudo y Cursi’

MPAA rating: Unrated

Running time: 1 hour, 41 minutes

Playing: In general release