Ana Garcia (America Ferrera) is frustrated by her mother (Lupe Ontiveros) who demands her to work for her sister at their garment factory. Her teacher Mr. Guzman (George Lopez) wants her to go to college. Her father is more sympathetic. Jimmy from school likes her.

While I appreciate the family drama, I really don't like either the mother or the daughter. Ana is too angry, too bitter and too whiny. The mother is too angry, too bitter and too whiny. They are definitely related. On top of that, the story layers on some body issues. Also some of the story feels unnatural. Her mother's claim of pregnant feels weird. Even if it's inspired by a true story, it doesn't feel necessary. What shines through are the two lead actresses. America Ferrera gets her big break and Lupe Ontiveros is charismatic.

I had many photos of the actress of Ugly Betty, she is gorgeous, but I had never seen her in a film without the big hair, glasses and braces, this film was my opportunity. Basically Mexican-American teenager Ana Garcia (America Ferrera) is on the verge of becoming a woman and graduating high school with good subject grades. Her family is very traditional, and her overbearing mother Carmen Garcia (Lupe Ontiveros) tries to stop her from doing almost anything a normal teenager can. Ana agrees to work at her sister's sewing factory over the summertime, but she still has the ambition to attend Columbia University, New York, after getting a full scholarship. Her mother expects better of Ana when she knows she has lost her virginity, and she wants her to slim also, but Ana and her dress-making co-workers strip to prove how comfortable they are. In the end, Ana manages to find a way out of her house and go to New York, and it is interesting that her mother doesn't have it in her heart to say goodbye. Also starring Ingrid Oliu as Estela Garcia, George Lopez as Mr. Guzman, Brian Sites as Jimmy, Soledad St. Hilaire as Pancha, Lourdes Perez as Rosali and Jorge Cervera Jr. as Raúl Garcia. Ferrera is gorgeously curvy, and a very good lead for this charmingly interesting comedy drama about going against the odds to get what you want. Good!

Thanks to a beautifully subtle script, equally subtle direction and brilliant performances from all the leads, Real Women Have Curves comes across as a superbly soulful and insightful slice of life. The always great Lupe Ontiveros is maddeningly tragic as the selfish mother who stubbornly refuses to see beyond her own needs, and America Ferrera blazes across the screen in blissful defiance - the smart girl who instinctively knows she's more than just the sum of her body parts and finds the strength inside herself to back up that belief with or without her mother's blessing. Kudos to everyone connected with this enlightened and enlightening movie.