Zoot Suit

While I am willing to agree with the one reviewer here who takes Luis to task for staging a somewhat lopsided revision of history, I'm surprised at the 6.4 rating for this very artfully laid out rundown of the Sleepy Lagoon screwiness in wartime LA. My father was in fact one of the sheriff's deputies involved. His version was understandably authoritarian and legalistic. But all that aside...

This is the best examination I've ever seen or even heard of regarding the psyche of the Mexican-American gang bangers on the east side of that dry wash that separated the fix-is-in boys downtown from the second- and third-generation campesinos of mid-century SoCal. I went to Woodrow Wilson Junior & High School in El Sereno. There is nothing in Eddie James's =stunning= (to me, anyway) real-ization of "El Pachuco" that is off the mark. Nada. He had the peculiar, paranoid-delusional, narcissistic-machismo, defense mechanism menudo of the vato loco =down=, ese.

And anyone who understands even a =little= of what it really means to be =Hispanically= antisocial in hyper-starched khakis & Sir Guys =or= peg pants & porkpies -- and =dig= it -- ought to be fascinated. (Go see the outfits some of the guys in El Chicano, Tierra and Thee Midnighters are sporting to this day.)

Lalo Guerrero's "Marijuana Boogie" and the rest of the "bop" lend further flavor to this nifty little play-turned-film. Watch it =carefully=. Valdez's script is subtle. This is sophisticated trabajo.

this movie was a great look at Chicano culture in the 40's.. i feel that it relevant now as well... i think it's more moving if you are Chicano and have grown up in that culture...it might be hard to feel towards the characters if you have not experienced the type of racism that Chicanos go through..i myself have and maybe i am biased and see this movie very inspirational...but what can i do about it, i'm brown. i recommend this movie even if your are not Latino.. you can see what people of other races went through...experiences that were not put in the history books by white America...see what was done to Chicanos of that time.

Having seen the original stage production at the Mark Taper Forum & Aquarius Theatres, in Los Angeles. I was quite blown away by both the production and performances. This was one of my all time favorite stage productions.

An attempt to mount the play in New York was a disappointing failure. I guess the "snobs" of the New York Theatre world, at that time weren't appreciative of something they just didn't get.

When I hear about the film being in production, I awaited it's release with anticipation. It's impossible to replace the presence of live performance with film. This filmed version was a truly impressive attempt to relay the success of the "live" production. I have long had my own copy of this film on Laser Disc and wish it was on DVD.

If you haven't seen the film and are ready for something different with some cultural insight, rent it on VHS, the only format currently available.

I saw this on the Independent Film last year, very good film, revolves around Gangs but gangs in the 1940's.

Also a film about Latinos (my people) and the problems they face in the inner city.

It's much better than those terrible soap opera's in Mexico, this film is a musical but it's also a drama focusing on different Hispanic characters.

This is one of the best statements, made musically, about anti-Mexican-American prejudice ever made. It is set in Los Angeles, during World War 2, when young 'chicanos' or 'pachucos' used the unique style of the zoot suit to set themselves off, and establish a florid machismo. Some of the plot is based on an actual incident. The movie is made as if showing a staged 'play,' in front of an 'audience,' in order to make particular statements about the way things appear to be. Edward James Olmos is the spirit of Pachuco, haunting Henry Reyna, the central character. We are brought to feel intensely both the striving for self-expression of the chicano youth, and the intense prejudice (based, as always, on ignorance) of the larger anglo society against them. Those of us who are anglos also come to identify with the anglos in the story who genuinely care for them and for justice. Four stars, especially for anyone from the southwest who is not a bigot.