Today I’m going to describe the comedy-drama movie “Instructions Not Included” from Mexico. Beware of spoilers! Valentin, who is six years old, resides in Mexico with his father Johnny Bravo. Johnny frequently goes to great measures to raise his son to be courageous because he wants him to be. He subjects the child to a tarantula walk, imprisons him in a graveyard home, casts him into the sea, and so forth. Valentin’s dread of heights, insects, and the dark doesn’t diminish over time; on the contrary, it intensifies. He begins to resent his father for subjecting him to all of this. Even as an adult, Valentin retains his cowardly personality. He now fears commitment in a relationship, though.
He has become into a womaniser who has a new love interest every month. Julie, an American tourist, is one of his flings. They date for about two weeks as usual. During this time, Valentin makes a commitment to her to spend the rest of his life with her and to love her forever. When someone knocks on Valentin’s door, he is in bed with two women and twenty months after the split. At first, he doesn’t recognise the woman, but then he learns that it is one of the girls with whom he had made a lifetime commitment agreement. A baby girl who is just one month old is with Julie. Up until he learns the child is his, Valentin offers his congratulations. Before heading downstairs to pay for the cab, Julie offers the infant to him. She doesn’t show up after Valentin waits more than ten minutes with his flings.
He eventually realises that she has left the child with him, at which point he panics. Julie calls from the airport and asks him to watch the child before cutting the call short. Valentin keeps her on a chair as he races to the airport because he doesn’t know what to do with her. But, he quickly recalls that little children shouldn’t be left unattended and goes back to get her. As he eventually gets to the airport, he sees Julie getting on a plane. He then proceeds to his friend Sammy’s beachside eatery. Moreover, Julie has left the infant a passport that says her name is Maggie. Sammy’s girlfriend informs him that he must now care for the infant, but Valentin is not ready to be a father.
Sammy recommends they make a lighthearted phone call to Angelina Jolie, but the other two ignore him. After that, Valentin and his buddies head back to his house where they go over each item that a large number of his girlfriends have given him. He discovers a letter from Julie that she had written him a year earlier but that he had never opened somewhere deep inside the stack. She discloses in the letter that she teaches Pilates at a resort in Los Angeles. A photo of her is included with it. Valentin sets out to go to LA to return Julie’s child despite without having a passport or a visa. He encounters Lupe, a truck driver who offers to give them a ride, while hitchhiking to the border of the country.
Maggie sobs nonstop the entire way, mostly because Valentin has no idea how to take care of her. He performs her first nappy change before beginning to love having a daughter. When they get at the border, the police forbid him from crossing. Lupe berates Valentin, telling him he ought to have acknowledged he didn’t have a visa. Unexpectedly, he turns out to be a smuggler who facilitates illegal border crossing. Valentin joins the group of unauthorised immigrants in the truck. He displays watchman Julie’s photo after discovering the resort he was seeking for. She allegedly went to New York and no longer works there, according to the man.
But, because Valentin doesn’t speak English, he believes Julie is at the resort. He enters into the laundry room, places Maggie in a basket, and leaves to look for Julie. He is shown to the presidential suite, where he meets Frank, a well-known Hollywood director. Valentin is speaking to him when he discovers Maggie has inexplicably escaped the basket and is stumbling towards the pool. Valentin jumps down many levels while overcoming his phobia of heights to save his daughter. Frank gives him a job as a stuntman because he is so brave. After some time, Valentin gains the skills necessary to be Maggie’s best parent.
He makes every effort to make her happy and is willing to put his life in danger to do so. He even takes her with him to every filming location, where she interprets the director’s instructions for him. Maggie sees her dad as a superhero. After Valentin is hurt while filming, he pretends to be dead and Maggie resurrects him. He does this so that she won’t have to worry about his pulling off risky pranks. They have a slide, a climbing set constructed into the wall, and lots of toys in their tiny apartment. Maggie also receives unlimited free food and frequently skips class. Valentin obviously pamper her even more despite how much he loves her. We witness him sneakily concealing an envelope amid his mail one evening.
He hands the young girl the envelope while acting astonished to see it. Her mother is the one who wrote her the letter. Maggie has been informed by Valentin that her mother is a superhero girl who travels the world saving people, so she must always be away from home. To make it appear plausible, he altered the same image of Julie with a variety of celebrities and in various settings. Maggie is overjoyed to get a letter from Julie and has no reason to question the loyalty of her father. Valentin has angered the principal of her school for allowing Maggie to routinely skip class. The principle has already heard the justification several times, but he vows to behave better going forward.
Maggie shares with her classmates what her mother’s travels are throughout class. Nothing they say convinces her that her father might be lying, despite their laughter and mockery of her. The father and daughter see the doctor just after school. In order to get Maggie to feel delighted about assisting him, Valentin makes up that he is afraid of immunisations. Before giving Valentin a prescription for a tablet as well, the doctor administers her the regular vitamins that she has been taking for the past four years. He informs Valentin that the medications are not working when Maggie is not around. A few hours later, when Valentin and Maggie are at an amusement park, the scene dramatically shifts. Maggie is mistaken for the woman’s daughter as they walk, and she swiftly apologizes.
Maggie is disappointed by the brief encounter because, despite the fact that she admires her mother for being a superhero, she still misses and longs to see her. Valentin observes her dejection and is prepared to take all action necessary to find her a mother. The following day, he and Frank conduct a number of female candidates for the part of Julie. Valentin rejects Frank’s advice to just tell his daughter the truth. He spends the day trying to find a decent Julie, and when he gets home, he gives Maggie another letter from her mother. Julie writes in the letter that she will soon be meeting her daughter at home. Maggie leaps onto her bed and declares that she has never been happier.
Valentin then receives a call from the actual Julie, who is now employed by a New York law company. She claims to be yearning to meet her daughter and feels bad about what she done in the past. Valentin decides to meet her despite feeling she is unworthy of getting to know his daughter in order to make Maggie happy. The following day, she eventually shows up after the father and daughter have waited there for a while. Valentin is shocked by how different she looks now compared to six years ago. Maggie meets her and falls in love with her right away. Valentin explains to Julie that Maggie isn’t aware of the reality of their connection as they stroll around the park.
If the little girl inquires, he further requests that she pose as the superheroine. After that, the family goes back home, where Julie discovers all of her altered photos and notes. Despite the fact that she abandoned Maggie, she is grateful to Valentin for portraying her as a nice person. The following day, while he is making his way to work, Valentin tries to tell Julie about something crucial, but she interrupts him. He rejects the talk but appears upset by it when she turns her gaze back to him. The family is at the beach when Julie later confesses to having a lover and sets up a meeting for them to meet Maggie the following day.
Valentin gives her permission and attends the appointment with her. He and Maggie are both shocked to discover that her lover is a Renee-named young woman. Maggie is informed by Valentin that some extraordinary females get married to other girls. Maggie picks up on it right away and is content to have two mothers. Julie and Renee must leave her after three weeks and travel back to New York. She admits to Maggie before departing that her father had lied about her being a supergirl and that she is just an average New Yorker. Maggie is devastated, but she hates her father for lying more than she hates her mother for leaving her. As she gets home, she removes every image from the wall and discards every letter.
Valentin gets a letter from the court a few days later. It is made known that Julie has launched a lawsuit to obtain complete custody of the kids. She describes what a terrible parent Valentin is to the judge in the courtroom scenario that follows. She believes that her daughter will be happier in New York with her new family because of the dangers of her husband’s job and the fact that he lets Maggie miss school. Although Julie left Maggie at an early age, strengthening Valentin’s case, the judge must decide for Maggie’s future rather than her history. Following the conclusion of the first trial, Valentin asks Julie why she is acting in this way after he enabled their daughter to interact and grow a relationship with her.
Julie just states that she is acting on behalf of Maggie. Later, in an effort to convince the judge that he can change, Valentin begs Frank to find him another, less dangerous work. Frank then advises him to be completely honest about his medical history with everyone. He may avoid having to argue the argument that way. Valentin is opposed to the concept, nevertheless, for the sake of his daughter’s happiness. At the subsequent and final trial, Valentin seems to be losing control of the situation. That is, until he delivers an emotional speech in which he expresses his love for and dependence on his daughter. For her sake, he also pledges to quit his job and find a stable one.
The final outcome is declared to be in his favour. Although Julie is angry that she was unable to keep the child, she has not given up yet. The following day, when his solicitor knocks on the door, Valentin is with Maggie at home. He has provided a paternity test to demonstrate that Maggie is not his child. Despite his hurt and betrayal, Valentin doesn’t stop loving his daughter. But now that it has been established that he is not her biological father, Julie will be granted full custody. As she arrives to pick up Maggie a few days later, she notices the father and daughter enjoying an emotional farewell. She and the guards are asked for some solitude by Valentin. He and Maggie use the climbing rope to escape via the window when no one is in the room.
Valentin takes her back to his hometown using his contacts. Julie is enraged when she returns to LA. She complains to the police, but they say they can’t just swoop into Mexico to find a criminal right away. Valentin and Maggie arrive in Sammy’s restaurant at the same moment, and they are warmly welcomed. Also, they go to a number of locations Maggie had only heard about in legends, including Valentin’s father’s grave. As the police are unable to help, Julie and Renee turn to Frank and enquire about the location of their daughter. Frank claims to know nothing, but when pressed, he reveals an unexpected fact. The next scene shows Valentin and Maggie relaxing on the sand. Maggie rushes to give Julie a hug when she arrives.
Despite Julie’s attempts to distance her from her father, she adores her very much. The best days of Maggie’s life will come during the next days. She enjoys spending time with both of her parents. Then, one day, Maggie dies in Valentin’s arms as they watch the sunset together. Then we learn that she had been ill the entire time. Valentin only treated her so lavishly because he was aware that she had a limited amount of time left to live. Frank was the only one he could tell because he didn’t want Maggie to know. Julie was so devastated when she learned the truth that she didn’t see the value in pursuing custody. Ultimately, Maggie had a good life before passing away.
Here this movie ends.
Thank-you.
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