If you liked the book, you won't like this

dw002m

The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love is one of those novels that, despite a fantastic story, great characters, and overall brilliance, should not be taken to the silver screen.

This was a weak adaptation of what is arguably Oscar Hijuelos' best novel. Are the characters intact? Mostly. Is the music good? Yes. But the story is drastically different.

Novels like this simply cannot be compressed into a standard feature-length film. Too much character development is lost (along with half of the plot!), and the standard Hollywood story changes deprive the viewer of worthwhile material.

The point is, despite some points of tragedy, this film was basically a feel-good story with an uplifting ending. Maybe you could call it a "romantic tragedy." But that's not how the novel played out, and when the studio cuts out the real tragedies of the story, we the viewers pay the price.

score 3/10

dw002m 25 January 2006

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw1274562/