Amores Perros (2000)

I don’t bail out on a lot of movies, but after about a half hour of this one, I gave up.  It’s a shame.  The movie seems to be highly regarded, and director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu went on to become a big deal after this film, directing “21 Grams” and “Babel”.  It was also Gael Garcia Bernal’s first film.
So what didn’t I like?  I can sum it up in two words: dog fighting.  I tolerated the first couple of scenes, but they just keep showing scenes of dogfights, with graphic images of wounded and killed dogs.  I don’t need that.
Roger Ebert made a comment once that I think applies here.  In his review for “Blue Velvet,” regarding the scene in which Isabella Rossellini is left naked and abused in a suburban neighborhood, he says that the movie had not done anything to justify or earn the right to show him that image.  In general, I find images of children or animals being harmed to be un-watchable.  There may be some exceptions, if the film is particularly gripping, and the scene is clearly necessary.  “Amores Perros,” however, was not nearly good enough to justify seeing so many dead or injured dogs.
I can live without seeing the rest of this one.

0 stars out of 5