Seriously he looks nothing like Ritchie at all!! I don't like when they cast actors that don't look like the characters they're portraying.
shareOddly enough, one of my best friends is a spitting image of Ritchie Valens. Sadly though, he's not an actor.
shareI can't imagine that there were many actors suitable for this role back in 1987. The casting call would have included latino, late teens to mid-20's, can play guitar and sing. There is not one single actor at that time that I can think of that fits this description and looked like Ritchie. Before filming began, few people outside of his family and friends even remembered who Ritchie Valens was, let alone what he looked like. Would the same actor that portrayed Ritchie in the closing scene of the Buddy Holly Story have been a better choice than Lou Diamond Phillips? Even though there may not be a resemblance, it didn't matter to Ritchie's family. They were very much involved in the production and said that it was like having Ritchie back. Phillips himself revealed in the VH1 special that when filming the scene where the three of them board the flight, one of Ritchie's sisters came on the set and was hysterical.
shareGeorge Lopez could have played Richie. He looks more like him.
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A dope trailer is no place for a kitty.
Many others would probably choose George Lopez but he has too dark of a complexion compared to Ritchie.
shareAlthough the Valenzuela family didn't mind. The Mexican American community did because Lou Diamond Phillips is Filipino not Mexican American like Ritchie Valens. I agree with the previous posters, there were plenty of actors and musicians who could have resembled Ritchie Valens a lot more than Lou Diamond Phillips.
shareIt's not like Lou actually played any music in the movie
shareDid Jessica Lange look like Patsy Cline? No, but she portrayed Cline in Sweet Dreams.
Did Sissy Spacek look like Loretta Lynn? No, but she played the lead in Coal Miner's daughter.
The best resemblance I can recall is Faye Dunaway as Joan Crawford, but I'm sure that took some degree of make-up. My point is that casting directors often choose the actor best suited for the part in these biopics, because they usually don't have a lot of time to try and find a dead ringer for the person being portrayed.
The overall concensus here is that Lou Diamond Phillips was a poor choice to play Ritchie because he seemed like a huge upgrade. Ritchie Valens may not have been teen idol handsome, but it didn't matter because he had the talent and desire to become a major star if his life hadn't come to the tragic end that it did.
I agree.... but Sissy Spacek and Loretta Lynn do actually resemble each other IMO.
sharebut phillips was great in the lead role.
shareI agree with the Loretta Lynn and Buddy Holly comparisons. Award-winning performances from people who did not resemble their namesakes. Phillips captured the joy and ambition of many young rock stars. He is very charismatic.
shareI agree. Lou Diamond Phillips did a wonderful job.
My sister and I were in London in 1988 and we were looking at postcards, I looked up and saw Lou standing nearby. I was so surprised, that instead of saying to my sister, "there's Lou Diamond Phillips", I blurted out "La Bamba" and he looked at us and smiled.
Even after first seeing this movie 25 years ago, and seeing it again today, it still holds up as a great movie. I was reminded again of what an excellent job Esai Morales did.
"Don't "yeah,yeah" me Lois."
^^Awesome story! I thought Lou Diamond Phillips was really really good in here. Much like Gary Busey in Buddy Holly Story & Jessica Lange in Sweet Dreams, sure, they didn't look EXACTLY like the great names they were playing but they gave really terrific performances!
"I am the ultimate badass, you do not wanna `*beep*` wit me!"- Hudson in Aliens.
LDP doesn't look like the real Ritchie Valens, but the difference isn't that big. The fact that Valens was a star before TV was mainstream meant that the vast majority of the American public didn't really know what he looked like. So the fact that the two don't look alike is a non-issue
LDP was perfect for the role, and excelled in it. He was also a fantastic lip syncer, as the role required. I can imagine it took many takes to get the lip syncing to look believable, and it came out nearly flawless. To me, this shows that Phillips put a tremendous amount of work into this film.
This was a wonderful and underrated performance by Lou Diamond Phillips in great and also underrated film. Hollywood rarely comes out with films this good these days.
LDP doesn't look like the real Ritchie Valens, but the difference isn't that big.
It does not bother me that Lou Diamond Phillips did not resemble Ritchie Valens. It was a MOVIE, not a documentary.
shareAnd that's just it. Most of the time, in a Biopic, the actor or actress playing the part looks little to nothing like the person they're supposed to be. Sure, there are instances where they do, like Geoffrey Rush as Peter Sellers or Jon Voight as Howard Cosell. But as long as the actor does good in the role, I don't pay much attention to a physical resemblance.
I love to love my Lisa.
I don't know if I'd actually seen a picture of the real Ritchie before watching this or if I had I'd forgotten what he looked like but I don't think it really mattered because after watching this today I can say I thought Lou Diamond Phillips was great in it and such a good lip syncer! You couldn't even tell it wasn't him singing tbh. Plus he was so cute in it! <3
real human being and a real hero
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It's not like Lou Diamond Phillips did a terrible job or anything. Had he been their only option, I'd say "meh, he did OK" The problem is, the filmmakers DID have a better option, within their own cast. Why didn't Esai Morales play Ritchie? He's CLEARLY a better actor (just watch the movie and that becomes obvious) and looks a little bit like the actual character....certainly more the LDP.
shareHe doesn't even resemble him in the least way. The whole reason it wasn't made a big issue at the time this movie came out is because LDP is at least 40lbs lighter and better looking. If they were to cast somebody who was less attractive and 40lbs heavier than Ritchie Valenz people would have been complaining.
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