Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

.Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

This movie started off in a very weird way. However, throughout the whole movie you realize that this really is how raising a latino kid can be sometimes. (Not all the time). It also shows the evolution of maturity of a young man growing up in New York. He takes it upon himself to change his ways even though it took many situations to actually get him to change. And as for Judy, at the end she begins to reevaluate herself to see if she even likes Victor and what is she really looking for. Did she like Victor or need him? Overall, I think this movie is pretty good. Also, has many humorous moments some might enjoy.

I love this movie and thought it was very well done. It doesn't just have to be enjoyed by specific race of people like some other reviewers are suggesting, it can be enjoyed by any intelligent person.Anyone who's grown up in poverty, raised by grandparents or guardians can appreciate this heart wrenching movie.Instability, poverty, trying to get by while still performing your responsibilities (school, chores etc) are themes of Raising Victor Vargas. Of course I loved Judy Marte's performance and will now watch any movie that she's in.A lot of people live this way, and it's increasing all over. Unless we get back to a place where there is stability in families, Raising Victor Vargas will not just be a movie, it will become a documentary.

This is an exceptionally good movie. What it does so clearly and well is to display the relationship between teenagers' romantic interests and their social status in the larger teenage society around them. The teenagers in this movie are all trying to establish a respectable place for themselves among their peers and having a girlfriend/boyfriend is a big part of that. The real problem is how to manage these things without becoming an egoistic monster. So Victor pursues Judy to salvage his reputation as a successful ladies' man and preserve the admiration of his friends and his younger brother. Judy, who is unusually inexperienced despite her hot looks, accepts Victor to avoid the crass sexual attentions of the neighborhood boys. But this isn't even half the story. Victor also has real respect for women, although he has to hide this to appear macho. Judy similarly likes boys but has to hide that, even from herself, in order to preserve her self-respect. Victor likes Judy because she treats him with a brutal honesty (despite her lie about already having a man); Judy likes Victor because he defers to her—he pursues her in his clumsy adolescent way, but agrees to be ruled by her, so she doesn't feel so threatened. Victor and Judy establish a good relationship by the end: it obviously makes both of them happy and they both benefit from it in ways that are important to them. You can argue that this is a pretty rudimentary basis for a relationship, but when one is 14 or 15, good rudimentary relationships are an achievement. The two are very sweet, and very immature, and will grow and develop. Similarly the relationship between Melanie (very well played by Melanie Diaz) and Harold. They are not explored in the same depth, but one can see the same process at work. Melanie sorts out her relationship with Judy vs her relationship with boys, and Harold overcomes his appalling awkwardness. They each gain status in the community as well as real personal growth. One doesn't know whether this relationship will last beyond a few days or weeks, but it doesn't matter—both are the better for it. So the movie shows a lot of respect for its characters and gives them real depth and humanity.

"Victor doesn't have much, but that's not stopping him from trying to go out with Judy, the prettiest girl on the block. All he's got is hope and a one-bedroom apartment he shares with his family. His grandmother doesn't trust him, his brother worships him, and his half-sister just declared war. But Victor thinks love really can conquer all in this warm, genuine, and touching romantic comedy about life in the part of the city most people never see," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.Peter Sollett' "Raising Victor Vargas" elicits engaging "debut" performances from lead actor Victor Rasuk (as Victor Vargas) and the cast. Mr. Rasuk and juicy Judy Marte (as Judy Gonzalez) are sexy and endearing as "Lower East Side Kids" discovering the joy of sexual attraction. Considering how attractive they look in this picture, it's not hard to predict they hook up - and, although you may wonder how "innocent" they really are, their characterizations seem true.Victor's brother "Nino" is played by Victor's real-life brother Silvestre Rasuk, who looks the part his older brother is playing. Sometimes, it's nice to see movie brothers who actually look alike; and, hopefully they will work together again. "Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs" sister Krystal Rodriguez (as Vicki) and old world Altagracia Guzman (as Grandma) round out the sex-starved Dominican immigrant family. So, are hand-held-camera coming-of-age films in vogue, or what? ******* Raising Victor Vargas (5/16/02) Peter Sollett ~ Victor Rasuk, July Marte, Silvestre Rasuk