Memories of a Mexican

Aug 24, 1950

1h 43m

★ 7.1

Overview

A history of the Mexican Revolution (1910-17), narrated through the striking images of the enormous film archive of Salvador Toscano (1872-1947), pioneer of Mexican cinema, compiled by his daughter, Carmen Toscano.

Genres

Documentary

History

Memories of a Mexican Trailers

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Cast

Self - Narrator (voice)

Carmen Toscano

Salvador Toscano (voice)

Manuel Bernal

Self (archive footage)

Porfirio Díaz

Self (archive footage)

Francisco I. Madero

Self (archive footage)

Emiliano Zapata

Self (archive footage)

Venustiano Carranza

Self (archive footage)

Pancho Villa

Self (archive footage)

Victoriano Huerta

A film's art director is in charge of the set, from conception to construction to furnishing. This short film walks the viewer through art directors' responsibilities and the demands on their talents. They read a script carefully and design a set to capture the time and place, the social strata, and the mood. They must be scholars of the history of architecture, furnishings, and fashion. They choose the colors on a set in anticipation of the lighting and the mood. Their work also sets styles, from Art Deco in the 20's to 30s modernism. Then it's on to the next project. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.

7.0

Chicken Real

Jan 1, 1970

One of Les Blank's industrial films, which follows a Holly Farms "broiler" chicken from factory incubation to the county fair barbecue pit. A hilarious, disturbing and surreal look at a large-scale chicken farm producing 156 million chickens a year! Film includes lots of chicken songs and music recorded live in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2013.

5.7

The Underdogs

Jun 1, 1940

During the Mexican Revolution, the people tired of living in poverty and enduring the atrocities committed by the federals, decide to follow one of their own, General Demetrio Macias, a thief with tricks he learned in jail and who along with "La Pintada" decides to take his people to victory. Led by Captain Anastacio Montañez, the newly formed army fight and honor their code at the same time as they loot houses to spread the wealth.

0.0

Shoppers Market

Dec 25, 1963

UCLA Student Color Film. "a documentary film of marked lyrical and experimental tendency which was photographed and recorded in a L.A. supermarket. It consists of five sequences: 1) description of people 2) Comedy 3) choreographing natural movements 4) transformation fo visual reality 5) empathy". Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2011. Filmed at Shopper's Market, Santa Monica, CA.

7.6

Soft Fiction

Nov 16, 1979

Chick Strand's SOFT FICTION is a personal documentary that brilliantly portrays the survival power of female sensuality. It combines the documentary approach with a sensuous lyrical expressionism. Strand focuses her camera on people talking about their own experience, capturing subtle nuances in facial expressions and gestures that are rarely seen in cinema. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with The Film Foundation in 2015.

6.6

The Man Who Skied Down Everest

Sep 19, 1975

This Oscar-winning documentary tells the story behind Japanese daredevil Yuichiro Miura's 1970 effort to ski down the world's tallest mountain.

0.0

The Costume Designer

Jul 13, 1950

This short focuses on the job of the costume designer in the production of motion pictures. The costume designer must design clothing that is correct for the film historically and geographically, and must be appropriate for the mood of the individual scene. We see famed costume designer Edith Head at work on a production. The Costume Designer was part of The Industry Film Project, a twelve-part series produced by the film studios and the Academy. Each series episode was produced to inform the public on a specific facet of the motion picture industry. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.

7.7

Marjoe

Jul 24, 1972

Part documentary, part expose, this film follows one-time child evangelist Marjoe Gortner on the "church tent" Revivalist circuit, commenting on the showmanship of Evangelism and "the religion business", prior to the start of "televangelism". Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2005.

6.2

Mexico: The Frozen Revolution

May 10, 1973

A thorough analysis of the socio-politics of Mexico, within the historical context of the Mexican Revolution reality. Includes footage from the 1910s, interviews with farmers, politicians, intellectuals, middle class, union, etc, as well as scenes from the life of an Indian family in Chiapas, their religious rituals, their crops, trials and bilingual schools. The film ends with the slaughter in the Plaza de Tlatelolco in 1968, during the infamous Olympics.

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6.0

Screen Actors

May 13, 1950

This short film takes a look at the off-screen personas of screen actors. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.

6.6

The Sun's Gonna Shine

Jan 2, 1969

A lyrical recreation of Lightnin’ Hopkins’ decision at age eight to stop chopping cotton and start singing for a living. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2013.

7.5

Harlan County U.S.A.

Jan 23, 1977

This film documents the coal miners' strike against the Brookside Mine of the Eastover Mining Company in Harlan County, Kentucky in June, 1973. Eastover's refusal to sign a contract (when the miners joined with the United Mine Workers of America) led to the strike, which lasted more than a year and included violent battles between gun-toting company thugs/scabs and the picketing miners and their supportive women-folk. Director Barbara Kopple puts the strike into perspective by giving us some background on the historical plight of the miners and some history of the UMWA. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with New York Women in Film & Television in 2004.

0.0

El Cairo

May 15, 2021

Mexico 1926. Durazo is an outlaw and a former revolutionary. He is getting at the end of the quest for a coveted treasure. His mission will be interrupted by an unexpected meeting, which will define his life.

7.6

Burden of Dreams

Oct 1, 1982

The Amazon rain forest, 1979. The crew of Fitzcarraldo (1982), a film directed by German director Werner Herzog, soon finds itself with problems related to casting, tribal struggles and accidents, among many other setbacks; but nothing compared to dragging a huge steamboat up a mountain, while Herzog embraces the path of a certain madness to make his vision come true.

7.6

Hearts and Minds

Dec 20, 1974

Many times during his presidency, Lyndon B. Johnson said that ultimate victory in the Vietnam War depended upon the U.S. military winning the "hearts and minds" of the Vietnamese people. Filmmaker Peter Davis uses Johnson's phrase in an ironic context in this anti-war documentary, filmed and released while the Vietnam War was still under way, juxtaposing interviews with military figures like U.S. Army Chief of Staff William C. Westmoreland with shocking scenes of violence and brutality.

0.0

I Be Done Been Was Is

Jan 1, 1983

A documentary about four African-American comediennes set in 1984. Restored in 2021 by the Academy Film Archive. 

7.1

Becket

Mar 11, 1964

Thomas Becket, Henry II's longtime advisor, finds his friendship with the debauched king corroding when he is unwillingly appointed as Archbishop of Canterbury in an attempt to gain absolute loyalty from the Church.

6.8

The Robe

Sep 16, 1953

Drunk and disillusioned Roman, Marcellus Gallio, wins Jesus' robe in a dice game after the crucifixion. Marcellus has never been a man of faith like his slave, Demetrius, but when Demetrius escapes with the robe, Marcellus experiences disturbing visions and feels guilty for his actions. Convinced that destroying the robe will cure him, Marcellus sets out to find Demetrius — and discovers his Christian faith along the way.

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0.0

Boy and Crows

Jan 1, 1968

An early short film by Penelope Spheeris about a boy enjoying the age-old pleasures of making a wish on a dandelion. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2016.