henryskol

I was a kid when this one aired and used to watch it after school. The nostalgic vocabulary for a time I wasn't alive in, some of the premises, and even the animation were some high points but a lot of the time it fell flat or a bit stale, even when I was a kid. There was some character acting and guest characters I liked quite a bit such as the nod to Samurai Jack with I Didn't, who was later renamed Larry, and recurring character, Principal Pixiefrog's dynamic with his secretary but it wasn't enough to really save the show. Fun to have on some of the time and a few catchphrases I still use to this day ("two words: soap"), but nothing more.

Don't get me wrong: this is well shot, has a sleek aesthetic appeal, and is decently acted for much of it. I'm not sure what audiences really thought back in 1958, but to me it came off as immensely silly. A few bullet points: * I don't mind if non- Mexican actors are cast in Mexican roles, but Charlton Heston is unbelievable. He was sincere and delivered well, but that makeup was laughable and it was funny to see all the actors take him seriously like that's exactly what he is. The accent didn't do favors either.

* Uncle Grande was quite a goofball, rather cartoonish and exaggerated. A lot of the dynamics with him and his nephew had a screwball type comedic appeal.

*Most of the scenes in the motel are also worthy of mention as characteristically silly.

* Marlene Dietrich is gifted and pulls off a great vampish look, but the illusion is rather superficial when she speaks with a thick German accent.

More to a serious point, I did enjoy the intensity of the ending and its tension. It had good style, good atmosphere, and overall the feeling of a good noir film. The main criticism I have is if you're remotely familiar with Mexican culture. I get that it was the 50s, but even back then if you knew, you would have to suspend a lot of disbelief. Welles to his credit builds good film work and I liked the monstrousness of his character, but he evidently had no idea what he was working with. For me this movie was great as a very surreal, sort of comedy drama to zone out to in a Mexico of the imagination, rather than a serious noir film. It did have mystery and suspense, but be it accidental comedy or jokes thrown in with a poorly aged set that you can then laugh at, it functions just as much an oddity as a mystery.

Will you be entertained? Most likely, just so long as hackneyed stereotypes don't bother you.