Selena (1997)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Gregory Nava

Writer (WGA):

Gregory Nava (written by)

Release Date:

21 March 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Music

Tagline:

The story of a girl who had the spirit to believe in a dream and the courage to make it come true.

Plot:

The true story of Selena Quintanilla-Perez, a Texas born tejano singer who rose from cult status to performing at the Astrodome, as well as having chart topping albums on the Latin music charts.

Plot Keywords:

Fan Club | Singing | Bustier | Husband Wife Relationship | Mother Daughter Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 8 wins & 5 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sat. Oct. 18	12:40 AM	TBS
Sat. Oct. 18	8:40 AM	TBS

Cast

Jennifer Lopez	...	Selena Quintanilla-Pérez
Jackie Guerra	...	Suzette Quintanilla
Constance Marie	...	Marcela Quintanilla
Alex Meneses	...	Sara (as Alexandra Meneses)
Jon Seda	...	Chris Perez
Edward James Olmos	...	Abraham Quintanilla
Jacob Vargas	...	Abie Quintanilla
Pete Astudillo	...	Himself - Dinos 1990's
Rueben Gonzáles	...	Joe Ojeda - Dinos 1990's (as Ruben Gonzalez)
Ricky Vela	...	Himself - Dinos 1990's
Don Shelton	...	Stage Dancer
Richard Emanuelle	...	Concert Reporter (as Richard Emanuele)
Panchito Gómez	...	Young Abraham - Dinos 1961 (as Panchito Gomez)
Richard Coca	...	Bobby - Dinos 1961
George Perez	...	Seff - Dinos 1961

Also Known As:

Selena: The Movie (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for some mild language and thematic elements.

Runtime:

127 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:12 | USA:PG (certificate #35172) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:TE | Finland:S (video premiere) | Singapore:PG | UK:PG (video premiere)

Filming Locations:

Corpus Christi, Texas, USA

Company:

Q Productions

Trivia:

Jackie Guerra wanted the part of Selena's sister, Suzette, so badly that she lied at her audition, saying that she was an experienced drummer, when in fact she had never played the drums. After her inexperience was finally revealed, Selena's real sister Suzette gave her private lessons.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In the "bidi bidi bom bom" scene, in some of the concert shots, you can see that there are only a few audience members and that behind them it's an empty field

Quotes:

Selena Quintanilla: You know I was just thinking, I've never seen you dance. Do you dance?
Chris Perez: Dance? Oh yea, I dance. Yea I put on my white shoes and black jacket and dance like John Travolta.
Selena Quintanilla: Yea, well, we can dance this. Come on. Let me see you dance.
Chris Perez: I was just kidding.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 55th Annual Golden Globe Awards (1998) (TV)

Soundtrack:

I Could Fall in Love

A Moving Tribute

Jennifer Lopez proved that she was a high-class actress with this true story of the Tejano Superstar whose life was cut short by a disgruntled employee. Lopez shines and Edward James Olmos is super (as usual) as her tough-nosed father. The rest of the cast is adequate, but the show is shared between Lopez and Olmos. The screenplay is a little sappy, but fine overall. Director Gregory Nava is always focused and this keeps the film interesting throughout. A fine film all the way. 4 stars out of 5.