Mexican MelodraMa elena lahr-ViVaz Mexican MelodraMa Film and Nation from the Golden Age to the New Wave TUCSON The University of Arizona Press www.uapress.arizona.edu © 2016 The Arizona Board of Regents All rights reserved. Published 2016 Printed in the United States of America 21 20 19 18 17 16 6 5 4 3 2 1 ISBN-13: 978-0-8165-3251-3 (cloth) Cover designed by Carrie House, HOUSEdesign llc Cover illustration of vintage girl, DoverPictura Label Art / Alan Weller Publication of this book is made possible in part by the proceeds of a permanent endowment created with the assistance of a Challenge Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, a federal agency. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Lahr-Vivaz, Elena, author. Title: Mexican melodrama : film and nation from the Golden Age to the new wave / Elena Lahr-Vivaz. Description: Tucson : The University of Arizona Press, 2016. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2016004474 | ISBN 9780816532513 (hardcover : alk. paper) Subjects: LCSH: Motion pictures, Mexican—History and criticism. | Motion pictures— Mexico—History. Classification: LCC PN1993.5.M6 L34 2016 | DDC 791.430972—dc23 LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016004474 This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper). To my daughters, Hannah and Emmy Thompson, with love and gratitude; and in memory of my grandmother, Helen Hughes Lahr x contents List of Illustrations ix Acknowledgments xi introduction 3 1 Melodrama and Mexico 7 Key Terms 10 Melodrama’s Golden Age (1930–1958) 13 Crisis and Resurgence (1959–1990) 20 The New-Wave Nation (1991–2005) 24 2 taming Nosotros 33 Enamorada (Woman in Love, Emilio Fernández, 1946) 36 Como agua para chocolate (Like Water for Chocolate, Alfonso Arau, 1992) 43 Entre Pancho Villa y una mujer desnuda (Between Pancho Villa and a Naked Woman, Sabina Berman and Isabelle Tardán, 1996) 51 3 the ties that Bind 62 La mujer del puerto (The Woman of the Port, Arcady Boytler, 1933) 64 La tarea prohibida (Forbidden Homework, Jaime Humberto Hermosillo, 1992) 69 Modelo antiguo (Vintage Model, Raúl Araiza, 1992) 77 Ángel de fuego (Angel of Fire, Dana Rotberg, 1992) 81 viii contents 4 Nosotros no More 87 Nosotros los pobres (We the Poor, Ismael Rodríguez, 1947) 87 Amores perros (Love’s a Bitch, Alejandro González Iñárritu, 2000) 93 El crimen del padre Amaro (The Crime of Father Amaro, Carlos Carrera, 2002) 100 5 seeing stars 108 Cuando los hijos se van (When the Children Leave, Juan Bustillo Oro, 1941) 110 Japón (Japan, Carlos Reygadas, 2002) 115 Batalla en el cielo (Battle in Heaven, Carlos Reygadas, 2005) 122 6 re-sounding Melos 137 ¡¿Qué te ha dado esa mujer?! (What Has That Woman Given You?!, Ismael Rodríguez, 1951) 138 Sólo con tu pareja (Love in the Time of Hysteria, Alfonso Cuarón, 1991) 141 Y tu mamá también (And Your Mother Too, Alfonso Cuarón, 2001) 147 conclusion 162 Notes 167 Works Cited 195 Index 211 illustrations Figure 1. A “tamed” Beatriz follows her general during the Mexican Revolution (Enamorada). 42 Figure 2. Gertrudis runs toward the villista who will carry her away (Como agua para chocolate). 49 Figure 3. Gina and Ismael watch footage of Pancho Villa (Entre Pancho Villa y una mujer desnuda). 53 Figure 4. Shots of men are superimposed on a shot of Rosario as “Vendo placer” (“I Sell Pleasure”) is heard in the back- ground (La mujer del puerto). 69 Figure 5. María performs her “striptease” to “Qué rico el mambo” (“Mambo Is Wonderful”; La tarea prohibida). 74 Figure 6. Carmen—played by Golden Age star Silvia Pinal—takes a last ride in her beloved Cadillac (Modelo antiguo). 79 Figure 7. Don Pilar reacts in fright to what he perceives as the multiplication of La Paralítica’s eyes (Nosotros los pobres). 97 Figure 8. Octavio waits at the bus station for his sister-in-law (Amores perros). 100 Figure 9. A wickerwork screen only nominally separates Amelia and Father Amaro (El crimen del padre Amaro). 105