“Is it too late to get our money back?” said Trey Parker, in the documentary film, “¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor!” The co-creator of “South Park” and CU Boulder graduate makes this proclamation after learning that the cost of renovating Casa Bonita had risen to over $40 million from the original budget of only $6 million.
The film is packed with strong emotions about the famous restaurant dubbed the “Disneyland” of Mexican restaurants. On one side are Denver natives’ comments about the restaurant’s renovations and on the other are Parker and Matt Stone, co-creators of “South Park” and “The Book of Mormon,” stressing to finish the restoration.
The documentary revolves around Parker and Stone purchasing the vacant Casa Bonita building after it was temporarily closed due to COVID-19 and its previous owners declared bankruptcy in 2021. It follows the duo’s attempt to recreate the old building’s atmosphere while adding their own creative touch.
The film sets the stage by going back to the 1970s when Bill Waugh founded Casa Bonita in Lakewood. Casa Bonita was sold to various companies over the years, but the building’s maintenance was never up to code. For example, during a walk-through of the HVAC system, Parker discovered that the vents were filled with thick clusters of dust and debris that had not been cleaned in years. Much of the dramatic tension in the film stems from watching them work to renovate the building and update the menu so that long-time fans are satisfied while the overall experience is improved.
MTV Documentary Films, which has produced documentary films like “Black Box Dairies” and “Last Flight Home,” is known for telling captivating personal stories about its subjects. “¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor!” was directed by Arthur Bradford who had previously worked with Parker and Stone on “6 Days to Air: The Making of South Park.” The movie feels like watching a “South Park” episode in real life complete with funny, dark jokes from Parker and Stone while they stress to renovate the building.
Bradford’s directing skills made it feel like we were watching everything unfold in real-time, with multiple perspectives and one-on-one interviews with Parker and Stone to see their creative process. Viewers can see the process in action in a scene where Parker and Stone play characters and record voice-overs for the animatronic skeletons that led to Black Bart’s cave in the restaurant. The pair’s decision to incorporate “South Park” elements into the restaurant felt special to locals because it made it appear as if they truly cared about the restaurant by devoting extra time and effort to putting on a show for customers and fans.
The film was quick on its feet thanks to editing by Chad Beck, Devin Concannon and Paul Frost, which gave the film a snappy pace that made it easy for viewers to not get sidetracked and follow the story. The editing team spliced together cuts from different interviews of Denver natives that gave long-time fans a voice in the documentary alongside the “South Park” team’s extravagant efforts to reopen Casa Bonita.
The music (like the restaurant itself) is very stereotypical, with salsa and mariachi music that makes you feel like you are in a Mexican film, and it may lead people to believe that Mexican music is always playing wherever you go in Mexico. Composed by Giancarlo Vulcano, the music in the film is played with congas, guitars and trumpets to make it feel like you are in Acapulco. In one of the scenes, Parker was in Mexico gathering inspiration for the restaurant when he stumbled on a humorous idea to add Elvis’s “Vino, Dinero y Amor” to be the main song played throughout the restaurant. By changing the lyrics of the song to be more comical, it gives that stereotypical feeling of dining in Acapulco.
While Bradford does a good job of revealing the renovation process, the film relies too heavily on the same emotional beats. Although the filmmakers effectively depict Parker and Stone’s stress and frustration, the idea of them not being able to finish on time becomes repetitive. Everyone’s constant complaining about how they were not going to finish on time and could not recreate the same vibe as the old building became tiresome, especially since we Denverites know the building will reopen.
On top of that, the ending was portrayed as a “happy ending” where everyone was eager to see the new look, but in reality, the reopening of the restaurant wasn’t all that glamorous and many were frustrated by the lottery system to get reservations. They delayed the reopening by almost three weeks and Parker was overwhelmed with the whole process of reopening it because he didn’t feel satisfied with the whole renovation. One way Bradford could have improved this film is by being more transparent about the difficulties of the reopening process rather than glossing over those issues.
Although the ending was redundant and unrealistic, it was fulfilling to see behind the scenes of Casa Bonita’s massive construction project. The documentary made Denverites feel like kids again by showing how much has changed and how they sparked a lost memory of a restaurant that many went to as a child. This film is worth watching for those who like funny punchlines and want to know how Parker and Stone resurrected this lost Denver childhood location.
Fans can watch the film in theaters at select Alamo Drafthouse Cinema locations for a limited time or stream it on Paramount+.
