Raising Victor Vargas
October 2004 Reviewed by: Anthony Di Marco Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

We have all gone through and weathered the storm of physical, mental, and social changes that adolescence brings. It helps when you have an older sibling, or sympathetic parents, to help you through this rough time. Peter Sollett’s faux documentary does a nice job at chronicling the difficulties Victor Vargas has braving puberty in New York’s Lower East Side in 2004 without the support of his family.

The writer/director depicts this part of New York City as a jungle and his teenage cast as driven by animal instinct rather than social etiquette. The men in the film act like male animals: their one goal is to attract and mate with any female they come in contact with. Victor’s behavior, the way he pushes back his hair, licks his lips, and reveals his toned physique, is no different than the way a lion, bear, or bird shows off to a mate.

The women in the film are not after sex as much as companionship and security. Judy is smart in the way she uses Victor as a shield to the onslaught of other male admirers. Prior to Victor she pretends she has "a man." She knows that if she is spoken for, she will be safe from attack. She also realizes that it is only a matter of time before someone sees through her lie.

Victor’s grandma, Mrs. Guzman, sees puberty as the work of the devil: a period in which children are possessed to inflict horrible acts onto themselves and face a life of hairy palms and blindness. Mrs. Guzman is an example of how a twisted upbringing and negative life experiences can combine to create an unhealthy fear of what comes naturally.

Fortunately, Victor has a good head on his shoulders and makes the transition from horny hormone man to sensitive human being. Victor eventually reveals a more sensitive side and learns that intimacy is more than just a sexual act. Victor and Judy do not consummate their relationship through intercourse, but they grow together by being open and honest with one another. This film should be praised for its non-exploitive observations of human sexuality and intimacy.

The package indicates that a high-definition process was used to transfer this film to video. It shows. The rich, warm colors are remarkably pure and solid in appearance and belie the film’s low-budget roots. The DVD looks better than the majority of big-budget Hollywood releases I’ve seen this year.

Issues with vocal intelligibility mar the Dolby Surround mix and serve to garble essential dialogue. I was unable to hear Judy’s comment about Victor’s reflection in a swimming pool, as well as some essential dialogue between Melonie and Harold as their relationship flourished.

Raising Victor Vargas grew out of a 30-minute film called Five Feet High and Rising. This short, which used many of the same actors as well as a ten-minute follow-up interview with the young cast, forms the majority of decent, yet light set of extras. A commentary with director Sollett, co-writer Eva Vives, Victor, Judy, and actress Altagracia Guzman contains some entertaining anecdotes. Unfortunately, divergent tangents leave the commentary feeling disjointed.

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