DISCUSSION LEADERS: SABRYNE VIDAL AND AMBER JONES

2. * VICTOR RASUK AS VICTOR
* SILVESTRE RASUK AS NINO
* KRYSTAL RODRIGUEZ AS VICKI
* ALTAGRACIA GUZMAN AS GRANDMA
* JUDY MARTE AS “JUICY” JUDY
* MELONIE DIAZ AS MELONIE
* KEVIN RIVERA AS HAROLD
* WILFREE VASQUEZ AS CARLOS
* These characters all reside in the Lower
East Side of New York City.

3. * Victor could be considered as someone who:
* “My name is Vic. This is my associate, Harold. Enjoying the day?
Nice day in the pool. Me and my man wanna know if you wanna
double-date one day”(Victor)
* “What kind of bitches I bag, son? -Come on, nigga. -
Dimes, man!”(Victor)
* “Let me tell you something. You ain't been with a man till you been
with me”(Victor)
* “You didn't know I was looking at your lips. Do it again. Bang. You
see. Keep on doing it because girls always look-- You're not licking
them. You wanna be a "papi chulo" or "papi feo"? -"Papi chulo." -All
right. Keep practicing!”(Victor to Nino)
* “What you waiting for, playboy? Your dick ain't getting any
bigger, Yo. Just go! I think you're scared. Yo, Harold. Let's go right
now. Fuck that. Come on. ”--Harold to Victor at the pool

4. Keeping a clean and “consistent” reputation seems to be Victor‟s
biggest priority. He takes pride in having slept with several
attractive girls in the neighborhood and becomes threatened when
discovered with “Fat Donna”.
Victor isn‟t the only boy in the neighborhood who pursues this kind
of reputation. They‟re all in hot pursuit for an opportunity to sleep
with as many “hotties” they can get with their „skills‟. It seems like
this is some kind of “rite of passage” that boys have developed
over time to become men.
“Look at Papi, how many wives he have? Like four or five.
See what I'm saying? He's a player, man- It runs in our blood. In the
"sangre”- Victor to Nino
How do you see similarities between Piri‟s rep and
Victor‟s rep?
How would sleeping with “Fat Donna” make Victor
a “punk” according to Piri?
Last time with Piri, we mentioned the topic of how
he acted on impulse- how can it be related to
Victor?

5. Victor is under constant peer pressure from his friend
Harold, and the entire “player” community-
“Judy Gonzalez?! -Was there any doubt? -You the fucking
man. -I don't know what to say. -Congrats. -No doubt. Was
there any doubt, son? -No. Ain't no doubt about that, baby.”
(Victor to buddies)
“Get out of here, man. Get the fuck out. I heard you're fucking
that fat bitch Donna. -Oh, shit! -Get out of here. Who told
you? -Yo, who told you that, man? -Everybody knows.
Yo, Harold. Let's go right now. Fuck that. Come on. Yo, you
think you even got a chance with her? Shut up, man.”
(buddies to Victor)
:
Why does Victor feel a need to put
on an act with friends? Does he
possess insecurities??

6. :
How do you think the dialogue between Carlos and Victor
represents the objectification of women?
Why do you think men feel the need to objectify women?
How does this objectification apply to the Latino culture
between relationships, marriages…examples?
How do men tend to assume ownership of women?

7. * “Look at this bitch right here. Check this
out. I'm a producer. Know what I'm
saying? This is my star, Double
Penetration. I will lay the pipe game down
hard. I will fuck you in your ass. -My dick
ain't all that big”- (Guy on the street to
Judy)
* Which one of y'all wanna get fucked in the
doody hole? You? I'll fuck you so hard
your aunt is gonna feel it. – (Guy by the
pool to Judy and Melonie)

8. Judy and Melonie differ
abundantly where Judy has
attention paid to her and
Melonie does not. Once
attention is paid towards
Melonie she in return acts in
impulse and sleeps with
Harold, do you think that
some females desire to be
sexual targets? For what
reasons?

9. All the females in the film are very
strong, and unconventional really. They
don‟t stay quiet, speak up, and are
tough.
Judy has never been in a relationship but
seems to despise men. How does the
community she lives in play a vital role in
All the females in the film are
how she perceives men?
strong women , how do they
dictate the direction of the film?
Do you think that Victor would
have changed, had he not met
Judy? How does she impact
him?

10. The Grandmother is the sole provider of the family:
• The Grandmother has set expectations for Victor that he can not
seem to abide by.
• She believes Victor is the root of mishap in the family.
• This idea comes to light when the Grandmother catches Nino in
the bathroom.
• Teaches his little brother Nino how to be a “papi chulo”
Discussion Question :
We see when Grandma gets fed up with Victor , she
decides to kick him out. After this incident Victor
does a turn around. How is the family even directly
affected by the effects of Victor‟s masculinity and
what do you think Victor has realized at this point?

11. Discussion Question:
Victor, a young man who plays into the
stereotypical act of masculinity teaches his little
brother how to be man or in this case “papi
chulo”. Is it valid to assert that the act of
masculinity is an endless cycle?

12. In the beginning both Judy and Victor were
trying to achieve a personal goal:
Judy: To keep the guys away and basically use
Victor as bug repellant
Victor: To heighten his reputation
Discussion Question:
What changed their outlooks on one another?
What has the power to change the way
masculinity is acted out? Love?

13. * REFERENCES:
* Raising Victor Vargas. Dir. Peter Sollett. Perf.
Victor Rasuk Judy Marte Melonie Diaz. S GOLD
Technicolor Distribution Services, 2002. DVD.
* http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xqrzmn_rais
ing-victor-vargas-clip-
1_shortfilms#.UTgWGBnZf9I
* http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xqrzmw_rai
sing-victor-vargas-clip-
4_shortfilms#.UTgWPBnZf9I