Didn't like this one as much as 21 Grams. I didn't fully understand what the point of the three different stories was. I guess it was the different kinds of love that each of the characters showed. After all, the title means "Love's a bitch," so love has to be a major theme, right?

My favorite of the three major "Acts" was Octavio and Susana. I really liked Octavio throughout most of the movie, until the end, when he had his brother beat up and then I backfired. I thought he was such an honorable guy, taking care of Susana, treating her right, but in the end, he wasn't much better than his brother. The final dogfight as such a stupid move on his part, and so unnecessary! It was sad that in the end the way he showed his love for Susana ("taking care" of his brother, fighting Cofi to get money to support her) caused the events that ultimately drove her away from him.

The second Act, Daniel and Valeria, was pretty good. It was interesting to see their relationship spiral downwards because of the accident and their inability to deal with their new reality. I suppose an accident like that would be hard on any relationship, and the newness of theirs guaranteed they weren't ready to deal with it. I found this Act to be frustrating because Valeria annoyed me with her dog, Richie. She just kept screaming its name all the time, then Daniel did it. Also, Daniel screamed Valeria's name a lot, especially in the scene where he tries to get into the bedroom. I just found the continual screaming of the names annoying, and it really made me want to just wring the characters' necks and say. "Pull it together man!"

The last scene was my least favorite. I didn't understand the point with the guy who wanted his half-brother killed. I would like to know what the reasons were. Perhaps that was another example of "love" in the film. Of course El Chivo wanted to show his love for his daughter, but really couldn't. I thought the end scene where he leaves the message for her was pretty powerful. It was incredible to see how much he changed when he shaved. It was almost like a rebirth. Maybe it was purposely symbolic.

Speaking of symbolism, dogs are everywhere in the film. I didn't really notice until I started thinking about the characters and I realized that two very important characters were dogs: Cofi and Richie. I think maybe the use of dogs was not only a plot device, but also a way to illustrate a different kind of love. Dogs are man's best friend, right? And when Cofi kills all of El Chivo's dogs, it's clear that El Chivo is hurt deeply.

Anyway, a good movie, though I thought it dragged on a bit too long. The last Act was particularly boring for me. And the second Act with Daniel and Valeria was frustrating. Still worth seeing, though 21 Grams is a better example of Iñárritu's narrative style I think. I'm definitely looking forward to Babel.