4 Unforgettable Quotes From The Selena Movie

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

This March 31 marks 24 years since Selena Quintanilla's death.

Like most Dominican households, Saturday mornings for my family were meant for cleaning. I would be awakened by the loud vibrations of the music my mom played. She cleaned to all the greats at the time - everything from Amanda Miguel, Ana Gabriel and Rocio Durcal, but most importantly the late Selena.

I was 3 years old when the Queen of Tejano music died and 5 years old when her biographical drama came out. At the time, my parents worked long hours in their bodega (urban grocery store), and my caretaker was a 17-year-old Dominican immigrant named Cary. Thanks to her, I know every Selena song. Together we re-watched the movie over and over. Dancing along to her performance scenes, “awwing” at the cute love scenes between Selena (played by Jennifer Lopez) and Chris (Jon Seda) and crying at the dreadful scene of her death.

While the movie is iconic in its portrayal of the real-life events that occurred (her father Abraham Quintanilla was the producer), the movie is also quintessential to the Mexican-American experience. From the moments in which Abraham lectures Selena and her brother AB (Jacob Vargas) on the “twice as perfect” exhaustion of being both American and Mexican to the iconic “anything for Selenas” scene, here are four unforgettable Selena scenes.

BE WHO YOU ARE

This cherished scene showcases a young Selena played by Becky Lee Meza, and her dislike of singing in Spanish. In frustration she says “Dad I don't want to sing in Spanish, I don't even like songs in Spanish, I like Donna Summer that's what I like.” This motivates Abraham (Edward James Olmos) to explain why she should embrace different parts of who she is.

SHE'S WEARING A BRA

No need for a quinceañera to depict the nina a mujer (girl to woman) ceremony. The timeline of the movie transitions perfectly from Selena's mom teaching her how to do the “washer,” or “washing machine” style of dance, to a full-figured teen Selena performing to “Baila Esta Cumbia.” Her father isn't to happy with her choice of clothing at first, but the specific top soon became a staple to her performance wardrobe.

WE GOTTA BE TWICE AS PERFECT

There's no movie scene that can explain the “Neither from here nor from there” feeling as perfect as this scene. After receiving an invitation to perform in Monterrey, Mexico, Selena, her brother AB and Abraham disagree on whether or not she should do it. Like many Mexican-Americans, Selena's family have lived in the states for decades but sadly will never be American enough for Americans and will never be fully accepted in Mexico. He explores the idea of being “twice as perfect” in order to please everyone: “We have to be more Mexican than the Mexicans and more American than the Americans, both at the same time! It's exhausting!”

ANYTHING FOR SALINAS

And last but not least, we have the everlasting quote “anything for Salinas” by the cholos that try to help Selena and her siblings when their tour bus gets stuck in a ditch. Though he's not there in the film, Abraham was present for the real-life event and told Entertainment Tonight: “The driver kept insisting that he could pull the bus out and so, finally I told him, 'You know what? If you want to try it, go for it. ' I think it was about the fourth jerk that ripped the bumper off and everything, like the movie. They picked it up, put it in the backseat of his car. He said he was going to hang it up in his garage with a sign that says 'Selenas.' That's exactly like the movie.” The scene is extra memorable as one of the guys keeps mispronouncing her name and adding an “s” to it.