I Like It Like That 1994

Lisette Linares, Luna Lauren Vélez, is a young mother of three, married to Chino Linares, a bicycle messenger who holds the family together with steady work. Yet the stability is fragile: Chino, the breadwinner, is having an affair with their lustful neighbor, Lisa Vidal as Magdalena, and the undercurrents of pain, pride, and secrets begin to pull the household apart. One summer evening, as a citywide blackout sweeps through the block, Chino is arrested for looting, and Lisette’s world shifts in an instant.

With the main income off the table and the weight of three kids to care for, Lisette leans on the support of her transgender sister, Alexis, Jesse Borrego, and makes a bold choice: she will pursue her dream of becoming a print model. By sheer luck and timing, she lands a job as the personal assistant to a powerful record producer, Stephen Price, Griffin Dunne, who is trying to sign a major Latin music group, the Mendez Brothers (the Barrio Boyzz). This new opportunity offers Lisette a path out of her old life, but it also deepens the entanglement of love, loyalty, and betrayal that runs through the family.

Chino’s world pivots further when Magdalena and her father arrange his release from custody. Magdalena claims that Chino fathered her son, Ritchie, Scott Jarred Cohen, a revelation that sends Lisette spiraling toward rock bottom. She moves in with Alexis, seeking shelter and a fresh start, while Lisette’s professional life brings her into close, complicated contact with Price. The dynamic is uneasy: Price makes advances, yet his calls and the power imbalance in their relationship frustrate Lisette, who tries to keep her dignity intact while juggling the demands of a demanding job.

Meanwhile, Chino’s relationship to his children deteriorates as he confronts a troubling reality: Li’l Chino, his rebellious son, has drifted into drug dealing. During a tense afternoon spent with the kids at the neighborhood, Chino discovers Li’l Chino’s new money and status, and his anger erupts. He lashes out, beating one of the neighborhood kids and then whipping Li’l Chino in front of the others, a brutal act that Alexis urgently tries to intervene to stop. The scene exposes a fractured community as the crowd jeers, and Alexis reminds Lisette that Li’l Chino is still a boy who deserves protection, not punishment.

The tension intensifies when Alexis points out that Lisette is beginning to resemble their estranged mother, a claim Lisette resists as she and Alexis confront their shared past. Alexis confronts their mother, and the visit uneasily shifts from reconciliation to painful truth, culminating in Alexis returning to her home with injuries that she attributes to the continuing lack of acceptance from their mother regarding her transgender identity.

Back at work, Lisette faces a moral crossroads when Price presses for intimacy again. She pushes back, insisting that he is “not a sexual person,” and the disagreement nearly pushes her to quit. Yet they decide to continue their working relationship, balancing ambition with the realities of their imperfect bond. Lisette returns to her apartment, trying to repair her bond with her children, and Li’l Chino—who has shown glimpses of forgiveness—offers a small, sincere moment of reconciliation to her.

Chino returns from a new job as a security officer, and the couple hash out the flaws in their marriage—the infidelities, the lies, the attempts to build a life for their children. Chino finally reveals the truth behind Magdalena’s claim, and Lisette’s dismay softens into a weary, wary understanding. The moment is intimate and quiet: Lisette sinks onto the sofa, and Chino places a pillow behind her head, uttering a soft, mornings-after cadence, “Good night, other person,” as if acknowledging their shared fault and possibility of healing. Lisette smiles, the tension easing just enough to let a fragile hope breathe again.

In a mid-credits moment, Lisette, Chino, and their children visit Coney Island while the Mendez Brothers shoot a music video for their cover of “Try A Little Tenderness.” The family appears to be on the cusp of reconciliation, riding the Ferris wheel, sharing slow dances, and gradually drifting toward sleep on the return ride to the Bronx. The scene leaves a sense that, despite the upheaval, the family is learning to navigate their past and their future together, one uncertain but hopeful step at a time.