The New York Times once listed Gael García Bernal as one of the greatest actors of the 21st Century, and that is because of many reasons. Born in Guadalajara, Mexico, to a prominent actress and actor/director couple, Bernal was destined for a life in front of the camera. He was a regular in Mexican telenovelas by the time he was a teenager, and when he was an adult and graduated from school, he became the first Mexican accepted at London’s Royal Central School of Speech of Drama. His feature film debut came in 2000 with the Mexican film Amores perros, which was the debut of director Alejandro González Iñárritu.
Not long after that, Bernal landed a part in Alfonso Cuarón’s Y tu mamá también, which was a smash hit upon release. Not even four years later, he would be playing Che Guevara in The Motorcycle Diaries and landing a BAFTA nomination for his role. The same year, he founded Canana Films with fellow actor Diego Luna, and although they became inactive in 2020, Canana Films continued to be one of Latin America’s leading production companies. Outside of Spanish-language cinema, Bernal has enjoyed success in Hollywood as well, seamlessly crossing over the imaginary boundaries between national cinemas. That said, these are his best Spanish movies ranked.
12 Rudo y Cursi
Rudo y Cursi came out in theaters in 2008, and together with Luna and Guillermo Francella, García Bernal manages to create a satisfying sports comedy with flairs of drama scattered throughout. The movie is set in a farming village located in Jalisco, Mexico, and two half-brothers dream of becoming football stars. They play in the local games against other youths, but when a talent scout finds out about them, he tells the brothers only one of them can go and try out for a big Mexican team. This causes friction between the brothers, as only one can win and go, achieving their combined dreams.
11 Cesar Chavez
García Bernal makes a brief cameo in the movie Cesar Chavez, but it is still a meaningful one. The film tackles the subject of Cesar Chavez, a labor leader and civil rights activist in the United States who helped co-found the United Farm Workers. Born in Arizona to a Mexican-American family, Chavez fought to unite 50,000 farm workers in California to fight against the conditions they faced, as well as the blatant racism from employers and Americans alike. This will not be an easy task; many are bitterly opposed to the thought of a labor union existing, especially for Mexicans and Mexican-Americans.
10 No
Originally based on a stage play, No stars García Bernal in the leading role of René Saavedra. A historical drama, the movie is set in Chile amid political turmoil in the 1980s, specifically when Augusto Pinochet’s power for another eight years was decided upon. The national plebiscite in 1988 has just been called upon at the beginning of the film, and Saavedra has been approached by a campaign to work on their advertising. When he agrees to the project against the wishes of his boss, he learns that the organization, which is launching a campaign called “No,” is detailing horrifying conduct by Pinochet’s government.
9 The Crime of Padre Amaro
Released in 2002, The Crime of Padre Amaro is a movie inspired by an 1870s Portuguese novel titled O Crime do Padre Amaro. When The Crime of Padre Amaro first came out in Mexico City, it caused controversy among the local Catholic community, as they attempted to suppress screenings of the movie. Bernal portrays Father Amaro, who has come to a small town to begin his time working in a church. As he soon discovers about the town, there’s quite a bit of scandal lurking underneath the surface, and he falls in love with a 16-year-old, setting off the spark for an avalanche.
8 Bad Education
Pedro Almodóvar’s Bad Education, which came out in 2004, was widely successful upon its global release. Its subject is this: two friends from childhood reunite in the 1980s. One is a successful director, the other an actor. Set in the 80s, the actor comes to the director in search of work, but then the short story he brought in hopes of being made into a film leads to a strange series of events. The two begin to engage in a sexual relationship in the middle of all of this, digging a deeper hole when the truth leaks towards the surface.
7 Don’t Tempt Me
Don’t Tempt Me stars Penélope Cruz in the leading role. A comedy, the movie focuses on Lola, a nightclub singer who only works in Heaven. One night, her boss decides Lola needs to go down to Earth for a mission: a Spanish boxer, named Manny, is in dire need of his soul being saved. So, Lola heads down to Earth to do what she needs to, and, in the process, runs into a woman named Carmen. Sent from Hell, Carmen is going to do the exact opposite of what Lola needs to do, leading to some cognitive dissonance.
6 Déficit
García Bernal stars in Déficit, but it also served as his directorial debut. Released in 2007, the movie made its international debut at Cannes Film Festival. García Bernal portrays Cristobal, who, while trying to throw a house party with his friends, ends up having to share the family estate with his sister. A spoiled rich boy, they are not aware of the nuances their class and privilege affords them, so when they start ordering around the help, things become increasingly awkward and the party vibes begin to decline as the events unfolding on the screen get more serious.
5 Museum
Detalle Films
Released in 2018, Museum is a heist film that packs a lot of punch. It features two veterinary students hatching an ambitious plan to steal from one of Mexico City’s biggest museums: the National Museum of Anthropology. They decide to strike on Christmas day in 1985, breaking into the museum and taking many artifacts of indigenous heritage, specifically the Mayan, Zapotec, and Mixtec. But when they return home and celebrate the spoils of their deed, reality hits them when the police manhunt begins on the news.
4 Casa de mi padre
2012’s Casa de mi padre stars a power quad: Gael García Bernal, Diego Luna, Will Ferrell, and Génesis Rodriguez. Armando Alvarez (Ferrell) is the protagonist of the movie, and he lives on his father’s ranch in Mexico. But when money gets tight and the ranch faces the threat of closure, his younger brother returns and there is new hope in the family. But Armando falls in love with his brother’s life, and, somehow, they end up in conflict with one of the biggest drug lords in the country. Ferrell learned Spanish to take on the role.
3 Amores perros
García Bernal’s debut, Amores perros released in theaters in the year 2000. It would become the first of a trilogy by the director, and the movie went on to become not only a hit in Mexico, but abroad as well. The movie takes three separate plotlines and weaves them together through a catalyst: a car crash that brings all the protagonists from each story and forces them to interact. In one story, a man is in love with his brother’s wife, while in another a magazine publisher leaves his family to have an affair with a model. In the final story, a hitman is on the move.
2 Neruda
Neruda is a biopic about the famed poet Pablo Neruda, who, while living in Chile amid political turmoil, would become one of the most famous Latin American poets in the world. The film begins in 1946, when Videla was nominated and elected as president of Chile, leading to chaos when he brutally cracks down on the Communist Party and dissenters. Pablo Neruda is one of the many who critiques him openly, forcing his family to go across the mountains in an attempt to flee to Argentina. At the same time, a police officer is looking for him to make the arrest of a lifetime, studying his poetry for clues as to where he might’ve gone.
1 Y tu mamá también
Alfonso Cuarón stormed onto the Mexican cinema scene with Y tu mamá también, a movie Diego Luna and Gael Garciá Bernal star in as two adolescent friends who go on a road trip across rural Mexico with the wife of someone they just met. Both have a crush on her and when one of the friends has sex with her, the other walks into the room and just watches. The movie then enters threesome territory between the trio, effectively unwinding the close relationship the two friends once had.
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