Like Water for Chocolate

In Like Water for Chocolate Tita and Pedro fall helplessly in love at a very young age.  They are seen about town holding hands.  Everyone around them sees how happy they are when they are together.  This magical time ends abruptly when Pedro is given the answer "no" to his request for Tita's hand.  When made aware of the despicable tradition of forcing the youngest daughter to never marry and always be the caregiver of the mother, Pedro makes a rash decision.  He believes if he cannot be with Tita then he will at least be near her if he marries her sister.  While this is a noble idea, I believe it was a very bad decision.  Elena, Tita's mother, was cruel to even suggest he should marry the sister.  In addition to being cruel to Tita and Pedro, this was also unkind to Rosaura.  The movie is not about Rosaura, but I feel she was also a victim of the situation.  She thought Pedro would grow in love with her but this was never to happen and she lived a life of loneliness and unhappiness.  I would want Pedro and Tita to stand up to Elena in the first place.  Running away and getting married would have been far better.  Pedro's father should have stopped him from marrying Rosaura.  This is a good example of why you should not do something just for traditions sake. 

Magic Realism was very prevalent throughout this movie.  Tita transfers her love to her food she cooks.  This love becomes magic in those that eat the food.  At the wedding it makes everyone cry after eating cake with her tears in it.  Later her sister is consumed with the passion put into the rose petal meal.  She runs away with the revolutionary fighters.  Elena keeps reappearing to Tita, tormenting her even after death.  Finally Tita stands up to her and she is gone once and for all.

Diarios de Motocicleta

Ernesto Guevara took a life changing trip through South America.  Almost graduating from medical school, he and his friend Alburto take a break from life and ride a motorcycle through South America so they can see the people and land of the surrounding country.  Throughout this film it is evident Ernesto has strong leadership qualities.  He is unwavering when his friend is insisting on telling tall tales just to get food or a drink.  Ernesto or "Fuser" insists on telling one man that he has a tumor and should be checked out.  Another time he honestly gives his opinion about the novel.  He is liked by all and quickly understands the plight of the people around him.  I believe the mining scene most likely had the most impact on him.  The poor people had their land taken from them and were destitute for food and shelter, the most basic of human needs.  I believe Ernesto was so disgusted by what he witnessed as poverty and unfairness in the human plight that he felt communism was the answer for it all.  He believed in communism with all his heart.  While during the movie you would not imagine him being the gorilla warrior he later became, since he was very honest, caring, and gentle, I believe the hatred for the "enemy" was born on this trip.  He later is quoted as saying, "a revolutionary must become a cold killing machine motivated by pure hate."

The Spanish speaking world appears to celebrate with great flamboyance.   Music, dancing and food are very much the center of every celebration.  Any occasion is a good one to have a party but birthdays are particularly special. 

El Mariachi

Mexican stereotypes are depicted throughout the film.  Hundreds of years ago conquistadors from Spain came and conquered the New World for their homeland.  The idea of a macho ruler has carried over into today’s society, and is often seen as the drug lords and gangs of Mexico.

Both Azul and Moco are the ruthless gang lords.  They worked together at one time, but have turned on each other for their own personal gain.  Azul has revenge in mind for not getting his share.  You can see even the guys who are under them are willing to sacrifice their partners if it will save their own necks.  In the end the new boss lights his match on his old boss’s dead chin.

This violence is very prevalent in today’s Mexican culture.  I personally am acquainted with missionaries in Mexico.  In the past year one of them was shot and killed while riding in a car, simply because they did not stop when asked to.  They did not stop because they were afraid.

The Mariachi lives to sing.  His whole purpose in life is to entertain through singing.  This is passed from generation to generation. The Mariachi is not concerned with money and worldly possessions so much as he is to sing his message to audiences.  In this film the Mariachi does not want to be caught up in the violence but is forced into it by being mistaken as the bad guy.  He ends up killing people in self defense when all he really wanted was to “be a Mariachi”. 

Music plays a huge part of this film.  Soft love songs are sung by the Mariachi.  More sinister songs are in the background during the scarier parts of the film.  When the Mariachi loses his guitar he will do anything to have it back including risking his life.  Music is his life.  In the end he kills the man who shoots his hand.

Machuca

Machuca

Gonzalo and Pedro are from opposite extremes of society, yet they form a very tight bond.  Gonzalo knows what it means to be picked on by peers, and I feel he relates to Pedro in this area.  He feels sorry for Pedro.  He wants to experience life through Pedro's eyes.  He goes to the demonstrations with Pedro's family.  Each family puts down the other child, but the boys stand by each other.  They do not care about social class or skin color. 

There are vast differences between the poor and rich social classes of Chile.  The poor had nothing at all.  They lived in a shack village and had a community out house for a bath room.  The rich could purchase whatever they wanted from the black market.  They had nice homes with house hold help.  They had the luxury of moving to a different country if things were not going well in Chile, while the poor were herded up like cattle for the slaughter.

The main thrust of the film was the political upheaval that many Spanish countries experience every day.   It brought home the stark reality of living in a world where the people have no voice.  It put faces to the stories you hear in the news.  I am not a socialist and would not want communist to take over, but is the military government any better?  I think not. 

Under the Same Moon

            Under the Same Moon is a very heartrending movie.  Rosria, the mother, entered the United States illegally and was working for very wealthy individuals in LA.  She was trying to provide a better life for her son.  She could not bring her son with her to the US because it would have been too dangerous. In addition, she would have no one to care for him while she was working.

            Mexico is a very poor country.  Rosria was a single mother.  She may not have been able to find employment in Mexico, and if she did it was not enough to make ends meet.  Furthermore, the grandmother, Bonita, was elderly and in poor health.  No doubt, she could not work for a living.  Rosria was taking care of her mother and her son.

            Rosria had confidence in Bonita that she would provide the nurturing her son would need to grow and mature.  However, there are many times throughout the movie where you can see her heart is broken to not be with her son.  The weekly phone call was heart breaking.  Rosria would write "Carlos" in the soap when she would clean.  She would be tearful when watching a mother kiss her child goodnight.  They would look at the moon at night and know they were both under the same moon.  Ultimately, Rosria decided to leave everything behind and go back to be with her son, leaving behind a promising relationship and job opportunities. 

            Carlos was a strong self driven boy of 9 years.  He thought he was grown.  He wanted to be with his mother more than anything.  He was willing to risk all his money and his life to be with her.  At one point he felt she did not love him.

            It is hard to say if a mother in the US would do the same.  I don't feel there is anything that would separate me from my children.  However, I have never been in that kind of hopeless situation.  No doubt, when Rosria left Carlos she did not feel it would be that long of a separation.