Today I took my mother to see the new movie: “Cantinflas“. The movie is a biopic of Mario Fortino Alfonso Moreno Reyes, who is perhaps the greatest film star in Mexican film history. | |
First a little background… For the first six years of my life, we spent a lot of time around my Hispanic (Mexican) relatives. Basically, my Tia Socorro looked after my sister, brother (as well as her own five kids) and me while my mom was working. This was the period when I had the most (constant) exposure to my Mexican heritage / culture. After that time, we moved to a different part of the city and they subsequently moved out of San Francisco. We still occasionally got together for birthdays and holidays, but I lost what little Spanish I may have understood / spoken. Anyway, sometime between five and ten years of age my mom took us to the Mission Theater and we watched a couple of movies starring Cantinflas (Mario Moreno’s theatrical name). I don’t remember anything specific about the movies, but I definitely remember the character. I remember being entertained even though I can’t possibly have understood much (if any of the language). I still don’t speak Spanish. What I do remember was the character was very Jerry Lewis / Groucho Marx / Three Stooges kind of funny to me as a young child. | |
About a month ago, I was walking into the theater to see “Guardians of the Galaxy” and I saw the big cardboard add for “Cantinflas“. I immediately flashed back to being a small child with my mom and brother. The next day I asked my mom if she wanted to go see it with me when it came out. Of course, she said yes. Well, at long last, this was the first weekend of release, so off we went to the local cinema. | |
The movie is actually about two periods in Mr. Moreno’s life: the 1930’s / 1940’s when he is beginning his rise to fame and then the mid-1950’s when he is an established star and being sought to play a part in an American film adaptation of Jules Verne’s “Around the World in 80 Days“. The movie is split about 60 / 40 between the time periods and is similarly split in Spanish and English. This may be a problem for those who don’t like to deal with sub-titles. The other “problem” is Cantinfas speaks so quickly, some of the sub-titles are barely on the screen long enough to read them (some, not long enough). Having said this, I was able to “get” most of what was being said. | |
Of course, for me, the more significant problem was I don’t know enough about Mexican culture / history / politics to really follow all of what the movie was “trying” to show. I also don’t know enough about American film history to appreciate much of what was going on when the film was actually in English – except what was actually being said / portrayed. For example, the movie starts with an introduction narrative about major motion pictures and shows a lot of “beautiful” people, but unless you know about cinematic history (I don’t) the narrative did little to draw me in, and the actors didn’t really look enough like the people they were playing for me to say, “Oh, that’s supposed to be so-and-so.” | |
Was the movie “funny”? No, not to me, although the predominantly Hispanic audience laughed repeatedly (and loudly). Obviously, there was something being lost in the sub-title translations. Was the movie entertaining? Yes. It brought back the old memories of my childhood. There is a bull-fight scene which I particularly remember (or felt I did) from my childhood. Having said this, you should understand Cantinflas is famous for his bull-fighting scenes and one was written into “80 Days” just to show Cantinflas doing this for the American / North American audience. Since I know I saw that movie in my childhood, it is certainly possible that is the memory I actually have, and not the one shown in the film. (And the scene in the film is not the one from one of his actual movies.) | |
Did I “understand” the movie? I’m not sure I did and I’m not at all convinced anyone else in the theater “understood” all of it either. The audience looked mostly like family types and I doubt all but a few were old enough to actually remember Moreno as more than a legendary figure in recent Mexican history. He died in 1993 – 20+ years ago. It was only after coming home and reviewing Wikipedia did I start to get a better understanding of what was probably trying to be portrayed in the film. The audience would have to be in their mid-60’s to have had any actual memories of Moreno in his prime. | |
My final review is mixed. It is a good, entertaining, and interesting movie which portrays a poor man struggling against circumstance and achieving a great amount of fame and a substantial fortune. He struggles with both work and his personal life and in the end is presented in fairly typical Hollywood terms as overcoming them (the challenges) to become a good husband and cultural icon. And therein, lies my challenge as a reviewer… I think the movie is “adult” fare. It has moments of levity and moments of pathos. It is well “crafted” (the poor look poor, the rich look rich; the past seems mostly black and white, while the “present” – the 1950’s – is in color), but I definitely felt like large chunks of the story were not explained sufficiently. In the end, I recommend the movie, but I feel the recommendation is based on my memories and not on the actual movie I watched. I guess I’ll have to see it again (in DVD or on TV), before I can make a more definitive recommendation. If any of my followers are Spanish speaking, I’d be very interested in your reactions to the movie… | |
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On This Day In: | |
2021 | To Trust Providence |
Exactly | |
2020 | I Am Learning |
Plus Plus | |
2019 | Day 2: All Things Considered |
The Path To Reward | |
2018 | Ryan, McConnell & The Republican Controlled Congress |
The Proud Dad | |
Day 35: Five(5) Weeks Completed! | |
2017 | Serving Is Proving Harder Than Winning For #DumbDonald |
2016 | Come Again… |
2015 | At Five |
2014 | Touching The Past |
The Supreme Question | |
2013 | Children Will Judge |
2012 | Liar, n. |
2011 | Freedom To Doubt |
Archive for August, 2014
Touching The Past
Posted in Faith, Family and Friends, Movies, tagged Cantinflas, Cantinflas - movie review, Faith, Family and Friends, Neutral Recommendation on August 31, 2014| Leave a Comment »
The Supreme Question
Posted in My Journal, Quotes, tagged My Journal, On Human Survival, Quotes, Walter Lippmann on August 31, 2014| Leave a Comment »
The supreme question before mankind — to which I shall not live to know the answer — is how men will be able to make themselves willing and able to save themselves. | |
— Walter Lippmann | |
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On This Day In: | |
2021 | To Trust Providence |
Exactly | |
2020 | I Am Learning |
Plus Plus | |
2019 | Day 2: All Things Considered |
The Path To Reward | |
2018 | Ryan, McConnell & The Republican Controlled Congress |
The Proud Dad | |
Day 35: Five(5) Weeks Completed! | |
2017 | Serving Is Proving Harder Than Winning For #DumbDonald |
2016 | Come Again… |
2015 | At Five |
2014 | Touching The Past |
The Supreme Question | |
2013 | Children Will Judge |
2012 | Liar, n. |
2011 | Freedom To Doubt |
Suspicious Minds
Posted in My Journal, Quotes, tagged H. Mumford Jones, Howard Mumford Jones, My Journal, On Thinking, Quotes on August 30, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Ours is the age which is proud of machines that think, and suspicious of men who try to. | |
— Howard Mumford Jones | |
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On This Day In: | |
2021 | Why Republicans Are Unhappy |
I Guess It’s True | |
2020 | A Tiny And Fragile World |
Your Lyin’ Eyes | |
2019 | Day 1: Done |
#IncompetentDonald Fails On All Three | |
2018 | I Put It Down To Bad Teachers |
Day 34: In And Out | |
2017 | And The Future Is Now |
2016 | I Am |
2015 | Positively Aiming Higher |
2014 | Suspicious Minds |
2013 | We Are Not Alone |
2012 | Lawyer, n. |
2011 | Each Day Remember… |
2010 | Impossible Dreams of Camelot |
Go
Posted in My Journal, Quotes, tagged David Livingstone, My Journal, Quotes on August 29, 2014| Leave a Comment »
I will go anywhere provided it is forward. | |
— David Livingstone | |
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On This Day In: | |
2021 | How Learning Infections Begin |
Stay Young At Heart | |
2020 | Policies Not People |
Just Thinking To Myself | |
2019 | Should I Start With My Religion? |
2018 | Fear And Hope |
Day 33: Good News & Prep | |
2017 | Directions |
2016 | Handle With Care |
2015 | Nothing But Pride |
2014 | Go |
2013 | Well, Does It? |
2012 | Near Misses Aren’t Successes |
2011 | Uncomfortable Feelings |
2010 | San Francisco (favorites)… |
Bullets or Butter? | |
Trapped (Again)
Posted in My Journal, Quotes, tagged Books, Christopher Morley, My Journal, Quotes, The Mind, Thinking on August 28, 2014| Leave a Comment »
The real purpose of books is to trap the mind into doing its own thinking. | |
— Christopher Morley | |
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On This Day In: | |
2013 | Someone Else Believes |
2012 | The Practical Value of Science |
2011 | Seize Gladly The Difficult Task |
A Constitutional Conversation | |
2010 | The Fierce Urgency Of Now… |
Rights
Posted in Other Blogs, Politics, Quotes, tagged A Short History of England, Gilbert K. Chesterton, On Rights, Other Blogs, Politics, Quotes on August 27, 2014| 1 Comment »
To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it. | |
–– G. K. Chesterton | |
From his book: “A Short History of England“ | |
[Found at: http://interestingliterature.com/2014/05/29/10-great-quotations-from-g-k-chesterton/ — kmab] | |
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On This Day In: | |
2013 | Do Bold Things |
2012 | Seven Causes |
2011 | I Feel A Tingle Coming On |
Sweet Songs
Posted in Quotes, tagged On Sad Thoughts, On Sweet Songs, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Quotes on August 26, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought. | |
— Percy Bysshe Shelley | |
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On This Day In: | |
2013 | The Wife Of An Ordinary Man |
2012 | Three Words |
2011 | Know Anyone Like This? |
2010 | Apoplexy?? |
When Breaking Up Is Hard To Do… | |
Sibling Awareness |
Real Ideals
Posted in My Journal, Quotes, tagged Johan Wolfgang Goethe, Love, Marriage, My Journal, Quotes on August 25, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing, a confusion of the real with the ideal never goes unpunished. | |
— Johan Wolfgang Goethe | |
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On This Day In: | |
2013 | A Happiness Weapon |
2012 | An Eagle Has Departed |
Ummm | |
And In My Prayers | |
2011 | Welcome Doubt |
2010 | Talk, Talk, Talk… |
Every Day At Least | |
Democratic Suicide | |
Pleasurable Reading | |
Loose Joy | |
Do, Er, Write – Whatever | |
This Glorious Company | |
Relax With A Good Book | |
Neither Vice Nor Weakness | |
That’s Rich! | |
Man Will Prevail!!! | |
Frankly Speaking to Arizona | |
Brother By Another Mother | |
Devouring The Present
Posted in My Journal, Quotes, tagged Eric Hoffer, My Journal, On Change, On The Future, Quotes on August 24, 2014| 2 Comments »
It is a paradox that in our time of drastic rapid change, when the future is in our midst devouring the present before our eyes, we have never been less certain about what is ahead of us. | |
— Eric Hoffer | |
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On This Day In: | |
2013 | But So Far… |
Twice Moved | |
2012 | Just Like Bubbles |
2011 | Caring and Driving |
Achieve Greatly | |
2010 | Unwise To Trust |
Attitude | |
If The Mind Is Not Tired | |
Irrationally Crazy | |
2nd Pair – Shoe Review | |
Ahnu – Gesundheit! | |
2009 | As for me… |
Health Care Reform Now!! |
Familiar
Posted in My Journal, Quotes, Writing, tagged My Journal, On The Familiar, On The New, On Writing, Quotes, William Thackeray on August 23, 2014| Leave a Comment »
The most engaging powers of an author are to make new things familiar and familiar things new. | |
— William Thackeray | |
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On This Day In: | |
2013 | Unbending |
2012 | Simple Sayings |
2011 | Wupped Again? |
2010 | 3 and 1… |
Musical Notes… | |
Doubt Tries… | |
Northwest Passages – Evening Two | |
The Beierly’s Web Site | |
Overdone
Posted in Humor, My Journal, Quotes, tagged Humor, J. Jenkins, My Journal, On Erasers, On Human Err, On Pencils, Quotes on August 22, 2014| Leave a Comment »
To err is human, but when the eraser wears out ahead of the pencil, you’re overdoing it. | |
— J. Jenkins | |
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On This Day In: | |
2013 | The Courage To Remake The World |
2012 | Minor Gifts |
2011 | I Love It When A Plan Comes Together… |
2010 | Eloquence |
Cleaning the Chalk Board |
Here’s One…
Posted in Humor, My Journal, Quotes, tagged George Bernard Shaw, My Journal, On Humor, On Joking, On Telling The Truth, Quotes on August 21, 2014| 1 Comment »
My way of joking is to tell the truth. It’s the funniest joke in the world. | |
— George Bernard Shaw | |
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On This Day In: | |
2013 | Non-Fungible Commodities |
2012 | Hope And Tears |
2011 | Just Long Enough |
Meaningful Thoughts | |
Even When It Ain’t, It Is
Posted in Leadership, Philosophy, Quotes, tagged Leadership, On Choices, Philosophy, Quotes, William James on August 18, 2014| 3 Comments »
When you have to make a choice and don’t make it, that is in itself a choice. | |
— William James | |
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On This Day In: | |
2013 | Still Happens |
2012 | Possessing Eternity |
2011 | I Thought We Were Talking About Afghanistan |
10 Commandments Of Logical Arguments (Fallacies)
Posted in General Comments, tagged Ad hominem, Ad ignorantum, Bandwagon fallacy, Begging the question, Burden of proof reversal, False dichotomy, General Comments, Hasty generalization, Logical Arguments, Logical Fallacies, Non sequitur, Post Hoc/False cause, Straw man fallacy on August 19, 2014| 1 Comment »
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