The rise and fall of salsa singer, Héctor Lavoe (1946-1993), as told from the perspective of his wife Puchi, who looks back from 2002. In the early 1960s, Héctor arrives in New York from Ponce, Puerto Rico. Success comes quickly. "The more he grew as an artist," Puchi says, "the more he sank as a person." It's a tale of talent - creating salsa with Willie Colón, with the Fania All Stars, and as a soloist - and a story of disintegration - fueled by drugs, alcohol, partying,... (Full plot summary below)
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The rise and fall of salsa singer, Héctor Lavoe (1946-1993), as told from the perspective of his wife Puchi, who looks back from 2002. In the early 1960s, Héctor arrives in New York from Ponce, Puerto Rico. Success comes quickly. "The more he grew as an artist," Puchi says, "the more he sank as a person." It's a tale of talent - creating salsa with Willie Colón, with the Fania All Stars, and as a soloist - and a story of disintegration - fueled by drugs, alcohol, partying, and depression. Puchi's voice - proud and querulous - dominates off-stage as Héctor's does on.
Leave your thoughts about El Cantante.
| ScreentalkBrian TallericoYou need to give your audience a reason to care, not just assume they will because your subject was important to the history of music. |
| New York ObserverRex ReedJ-Lo really delivers the goods. I haven't always been a fan, but she makes this movie a must-see. |
| Dallas Morning NewsMario TarradellNothing gets explored at length, and some key points are glossed over altogether, namely Héctor's out-of-wedlock son and his frequent womanizing. Such factual details would demoralize Puchi. They are merely mentioned, then ignored. |
| Deseret News (Salt Lake City)Jeff ViceEl Cantante hits several of the low points in the life of pioneering Salsa music singer Hector Lavoe. But it glosses over many -- if not all -- of the high points in his too-brief life and music career. |
| Arizona Daily StarPhil VillarrealIchaso takes the inspiration-explanation technique a step further, setting up scenes that echo Lavoe's album covers, which flash across the screen. Corny, yes, but sort of cool. |
| NewsdayJan StuartThe vibrant music ultimately takes a back seat to the cacophonous lady at the film's misplaced center |
| EricDSnider.comEric D. SniderTo put it bluntly: Why should I care who Hector Lavoe was? El Cantante does nothing to answer that question. |
| New York PostLou LumenickA sizzling soundtrack and Jennifer Lopez's best performance since "Out of Sight" go only so far in El Cantante, a downer of a musical biopic that leaves no cliché unturned. |
| ViewLondonMatthew TurnerThis is an entertaining biopic that's worth seeing for the terrific musical sequences and for the superb performances by Anthony and Lopez. Recommended. |
| Ebert & RoeperRichard RoeperI would have liked to have seen a more in-depth look at the salsa movement. Still, we do get a lot of great music, and Anthony is a natural onscreen in a tailor-made role. |
