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88Enormously entertaining for moviegoers of any age -- But for young women depressed because they don't look like skinny models, this film is a breath of common sense and fresh air. Real Women Have Curves is a reminder of how rarely the women in the movies are real.
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88What's most refreshing about Real Women Have Curves is its unforced comedy-drama and its relaxed, natural-seeming actors.
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88I have seen the future of Hollywood movie stardom, and its name is America Ferrera.
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88Passionately acted and grittily convincing.
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88The film offers an unusually rounded picture of a Latino family. All the men work, getting up early to do blue-collar jobs that demand dedication and responsible behavior. (We don't see much of them, but they have a strong presence in the household.)
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83It's refreshingly low on the kind of Cinema of Empowerment pedantry that often goes along with stories about ethnic families, sweatshop working conditions, or women confronting issues of weight and body image -- and this little crowd-pleaser embraces all three.
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80Accomplished and invigorating debut feature from Colombian-born director Patricia Cardoso that took both the Audience Award and a Special Jury Prize at Sundance this year.
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80In her first major role, Ferrera is amazing -- It is a wonderfully natural performance. To top it all off, she and Ontiveros are completely believable as mother and daughter.
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80Honest and wise enough to strike the right bittersweet note.
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80Effervescent and satisfying, a crowd pleaser that does not condescend.
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80It's a joy to see nice warm performances by real people of different shapes, sizes and ages, who are seldom to be found in any glamour catalogues. And it's even more rewarding to watch Ferrera's many-sided performance.
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Handsomely shot by cinematographer Jim Denault, the film immerses the audience in Ana's world, its mosaic of colors and sounds and people, to create a vivid cinematic portrait not only of one girl but of an entire community.
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78Even though the storyline of Real Women Have Curves is a somewhat familiar tale, the film's originality lies in the way in which it's told.
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75It's a warmly realistic comedy-drama that pulls you right into its lively, well-drawn L.A. milieu.
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75A warm, funny, engaging film by Patricia Cardoso that realistically portrays the struggles of many first-generation American women.
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75Any woman who wears more than a size 12 -- and that would be the majority of adult females in the United States -- will get buckets of self-esteem from Real Women Have Curves.
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A warm, funny family story that defies popular notions about immigrant families.
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75Ana is a vivid, vibrant individual and the movie's focus upon her makes it successful and accessible.
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75If ever a film seemed poised to take over the spot occupied by the surprise indie hit, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," it's Real Women Have Curves.
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70One of those films where, even though you're pretty sure you know where it's going, it's still fun to get there.
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70Delightful coming-of-age comedy-drama.
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63Less of a "You go, girl" manifesto than its title would suggest.
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60Ms. Ferrera is an engaging performer; you find yourself rooting for Ana from the start, even though you know, from the predictable script by George LaVoo and Josefina Lopez, that rooting isn't required for a happy outcome.
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Some pieces of the plot feel dishonest, others contrived, but there are also moments of nicely observed detail and plenty of good messages.
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50A sweet-natured coming-of-age/raising-of-consciousness drama.
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50One of the not-so-nice qualities of Real Women Have Curves is that it occasionally is as preachy as its title suggests.
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50The film stakes out a self-affirming Atkins-free zone that seems unobjectionable in theory, but its speechifying tendencies and familiar familial tensions overwhelm the more delicate scenes.
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42A little movie, fine, but a little movie with little in the way of character composition, cinematic panache or intelligent writing.