hawparks2
Joined Feb 2001
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Reviews14
hawparks2's rating
This is certainly one of Cantinflas classics (arguable the best). It is also the first one with his favorite director MM Delgado, who was debuting as director in "complete" charge. I'm not sure who benefited more of this association. Delgado became one of the busiest directors in Mexico and Cantinflas never made a better movie than "Ahi esta el detalle" (also can be arguable the best) done previously and directed by Bustillo Oros. However, he equaled this many times with Delgado (at least until his color movies). Here in this film, it is notorious the liberty he gives Cantinflas to improvise. I believe that this produced most of his funniest scenes. Like in this one when he was reading his report to the chief of police, about a bomb that is just about to explode; and he excuses himself for having trouble to read what he wrote, because he doesn't know how to read and write. Anyway, it's a gem of a comedy and a must to be digitally restored.
This might or not be a Mexican "Taming of the shrew", but certainly it's a classic from the Mexican golden era. Some might remember it as a Felix/Armendariz movie, but I can assure you it is a Fernandez/Figueroa movie for two reasons; "Enamorada" and "The Torch". By this time, Fernandez, Figueroa and Armendariz were already well known in Hollywood, not only because of their recent success of "Maria Candelaria" (with the former Hollywood star Dolores Del Rio) obvious reasons to bring a lot of attention. Maybe that's why it wasn't equally distributed and popularized in USA, perhaps someone fall in love with it, to the point of buying it and redo it in an English version. An English version that excluded Maria Felix, but included a former Mrs. Chaplin (who also produced) and Pedo Armendariz with some of the original crew, and Cholula and the volcanoes of Puebla in the background. But no matter what version you see first, this one is by far better, but not much more realistic, considering what was the reality of the Revolution years.
If you are a Cantinflas fan or a serious student, this is perfect for you. It was done some years before the development of his classic image and his association with MM Delgado. The most remarkable of this film, are the scenes when he appears in a theatre with his still partner then Manuel Medel, doing the same sketches they did a few years before, at the now mythical "carpas" (portable theatres under canvas). And here he appears as he used to appear in his very early years. Just those scenes, make this movie worth to be digitally restored and preserved in DVD.