{{short description|1995 film by Mira Nair}} {{For|the Mexican film|The Perez Family (1949 film)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2026}} {{Infobox film | name = The Perez Family | image = Perez family.jpg | caption = Theatrical release poster | director = [[Mira Nair]] | screenplay = [[Robin Swicord]] | based_on = {{based on|''The Perez Family''<br>1990 novel|Christine Bell}} | producer = Julia Chasman<br>Robin Swicord | starring = {{Plainlist| * [[Marisa Tomei]] * [[Alfred Molina]] * [[Chazz Palminteri]] * [[Anjelica Huston]] * [[Trini Alvarado]] * [[Celia Cruz]]}} | cinematography = [[Stuart Dryburgh]] | editing = [[Robert Estrin]]<br>Greg Finton | music = [[Alan Silvestri]] | distributor = [[The Samuel Goldwyn Company]] | released = {{Film date|1995|05|12|U.S.|1995|08|23|UK}} | runtime = 114 minutes | country = United States | language = English | budget = $11,000,000 (estimated) | gross = $2,832,826 }} '''''The Perez Family''''' is an American comedy film released in 1995 about a group of Cuban refugees in America who pretend to be a family. It stars [[Marisa Tomei]], [[Alfred Molina]], [[Anjelica Huston]], [[Chazz Palminteri]], and other well-known actors. It was based on the 1990 novel ''The Perez Family'' by Christine Bell. The film was directed by [[Mira Nair]].
The premise was that a group of unrelated people, who happened to share the last name "Pérez", realized they could more easily stay in America if they pretended to be family. Set in 1980 during the [[Mariel boatlift]], the movie shows Juan Raúl Pérez ([[Alfred Molina]]), a former aristocrat and newly released political prisoner, seeking to return to his wife, now in America, after 20 years. Dottie Pérez ([[Marisa Tomei]]) is a former prostitute, who Juan meets. U.S. Immigration officials assume the two are married, because of the common last name. The potential for a real romantic relationship between the couple sets the basis for much of the rest of the film.
==Cast== * [[Marisa Tomei]] as Dorita Evita Pérez * [[Alfred Molina]] as Juan Raúl Pérez * [[Anjelica Huston]] as Carmela Pérez * [[Chazz Palminteri]] as Lieutenant John Pirelli * [[Trini Alvarado]] as Teresa Pérez * [[Celia Cruz]] as Luz Pat * [[Ranjit Chowdhry]] as Indian Immigration Official * Diego Wallraff as Ángel Díaz * [[Ellen Cleghorne]] as Officer Rhoades * Angela Lanza as Flavia * Jose Felipe Padron as Felipe Pérez * Lázaro Pérez as Armando "Papi" Pérez * [[Bill Sage]] as Steve Steverino * [[Vincent Gallo]] as Orlando * [[Billy Hopkins]] as Father Aiden * [[Ruben Rabasa]] as Father Martínez * Melissa Anne Acosta as Isabel Archival footage of [[Jimmy Carter]] and [[Fidel Castro]] also appeared in the film.
==Reception== ''The Perez Family'' holds a score of 60% on review aggregator [[Rotten Tomatoes]], with an average rating of 6.0/10, based on 20 reviews.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Perez Family |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/perez_family |access-date=October 7, 2023 |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |publisher=[[Fandango Media]]}}</ref>
==Soundtrack== The soundtrack composed by [[Alan Silvestri]] was released by Music Box Records, paired with his score for ''[[Clean Slate (1994 film)|Clean Slate]]''.
==References== {{Reflist}}
== External links == *{{IMDb title|0114113|The Perez Family}} *{{mojo title|perezfamily}} *{{rotten-tomatoes|perez_family}} *[http://www.musicbox-records.com/en/41-clean-slate-the-perez-family.html CD soundtrack on Music Box Records]
{{Mira Nair}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Perez Family, The}} [[Category:1995 films]] [[Category:1995 comedy films]] [[Category:American comedy films]] [[Category:Films about immigration to the United States]] [[Category:Films based on American novels]] [[Category:Films directed by Mira Nair]] [[Category:Films produced by Michael Nozik]] [[Category:Films scored by Alan Silvestri]] [[Category:Films set in 1980]] [[Category:Films set in Coral Gables, Florida]] [[Category:Films set in Miami]] [[Category:Films with screenplays by Robin Swicord]] [[Category:The Samuel Goldwyn Company films]] [[Category:1995 English-language films]] [[Category:1995 American films]] [[Category:English-language comedy films]]