Mexico
And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself (United States), 2003.
The true story of how Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa allowed a Hollywood crew to film him in battle, altering the course of film and military history in the process. Early movie giants D.W. Griffin and Harry Aiken send Frank Thayer to Mexico to persuade the cash-strapped, publicity-hungry Villa to let them film his revolution. Stepping into the literal cross fire, Thayer’s crew risk their lives in the mingling of fiction and reality. The two make their movie and its original U.S. release helps change public opinion in Villa’s favor and proves “the lens is mightier than the sword.”
Art and Revolution (United States), 1982.
Shows how history and art have been brought together in Mexico by such painters as Rivera and Siqueiros. Demonstrates that plastic art is the shared possession of all social and educational levels in Mexico.
Así es mi tierra (Mexico), 1937.
Comedy set in Mexico in 1916 two friends are entangled in the intrigue of a revolutionary general.
Bread and Roses (Mexico), 2000.
Maya is an illegal alien who has crossed the U.S. border from Mexico to search for her sister Rosa, and to begin a new life. After being reunited, Rosa gets Maya a job with a janitorial service in a large office building. While working, Maya happens upon Sam Shapiro, a muckraking lawyer and union agitator whom the service-workers’ union has assigned to bring its “justice for janitors” campaign to the building. Appalled at the work conditions and unfair labor practices, Maya and Sam team up to fight her employer.
Como agua para chocolate (Mexico), 1991.
In a love story which blends fantasy and reality, Tita is condemned by her mother to live unmarried so that she can take care of her mother till death. Her sweetheart Pedro marries her older sister to stay near her. Using the wisdom of the kitchen taught to her by an old servant, Tita cooks to express her emotions, producing strange effects on her family. Her cooking, like a magic potion, acts on her and those around her, eventually procuring her emancipation and happiness.
El compadre Mendoza (Mexico), 1933.
A classical film drama about Mendoza, a landowner, who tries to maintain friendships with both the leader of the government forces and the general of the Zapatista rebels during the Mexican Revolution. This film is part of a trilogy along with El prisionero trese (1933) and Vámonos con Pancho Villa (1935).
Cananea (Mexico), 1977.
Based on true events– follows William Greene who strikes it rich and develops the most profitable copper mine in Mexico, where the mistreatment of labor leads to a miner’s strike setting into motion one of the bloodiest battles in Mexican history and inciting the Mexican Revolution.
Canoa (Mexico), 1975.
Based on actual events that occurred on Sept. 14, 1968 in the mountainous town of San Miguel de Canoa, Mexico. A group of employees from the Puebla University set out on a hiking excursion, were mistaken for radical communist agitators by a domineering local priest. A mob of townspeople are incited to riot, resulting in the brutal murders of several of the young men.
Crossing Arizona (United States), 2006.
Examines the border crisis as seen through the eyes of Arizona ranchers, border patrol agents, politicians, farmers, humanitarians, and Mexican migrants.
La escondida (Mexico), 1956.
Mexico, 1909, a peasant girl rises to fame and riches as a noted courtesan. She retains loyalty to her roots and her love for a Zapatista brings about her downfall.
Escuela (United States), 2002.
Documents the experiences of children of migrant farm workers trying to complete their education. Filmed in California, Texas, and Mexico.
Espaldas mojadas (Mexico), 1953.
A timeless and poignant tale dramatizing the plight of Mexican migrant workers in the U.S. Rafael, in trouble and in need of work, crosses the border to a new life. He does not adapt to life in the U.S. though and ultimately returns to Mexico.
My Family — Mi familia (United States), 1995.
Presents the three-generation saga of the Sánchez family as told by the eldest son. From the beginnings of his father’s journey from Mexico to California in the 1920s, to his brother Chucho’s tragic rebellion of the 1950s, to the stark realities of the present, the struggle to live the American dream is sometimes darkened but never diminished for Paco Sánchez and his family.
Frida (United States), 2003.
Portrayal of the life, career, and death of famous Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, based on the book Frida: a biography of Frida Kahlo by Hayden Herrera.
El Indio (Mexico), 1938.
The greedy and power hungry owner of a hacienda routinely mistreats his workers, the majority of which are natives. One such worker, Julian, knows the location of valuable Indian relics, but refuses to tell the hacienda owner where he can find them. Enraged, the autocratic owner tries to have Julian hanged, but Felipe, another native, rescues him. The natives decide that this event is the last straw, and led by Felipe, start a rebellion against the hacienda owner and other men like him throughout the region. Sympathetic towards the oppressed native population of Mexico.
The Life and Times of Frida Kahlo (United States), 2004.
Frida Kahlo was more than a great painter: her life and art reflected the maelstrom of the revolution and culture that defined the first half of the twentieth century. This film combines Kahlo’s artwork with photos, archival films and interviews.
El lugar sin limites — Place without Limits (Mexico), 1977.
La Manuela, a transvestite, lives in a brothel run by his daughter. When his daughter is threatened, La Manuela steps in to protect her with tragic consequences.
Maquilapolis — City of Factories (Mexico), 2006.
Explores the environmental devastation and urban chaos of Tijuana’s assembly factories and the female laborers who have organized themselves for social action. Maquiladora workers produce televisions, electrical cables, toys, clothes, batteries and IV tubes, they weave the very fabric of life for consumer nations.
Las muertas de Juarez (Mexico), 2002.
A feature film based on unsolved crimes in which more than 200.
Novia que te vea — Like a Bride (Mexico), 2005.
One of the first films to portray Mexico’s Jewish community in all its complexities … the personal and political awakening of two young women. Set in the political turmoil of Mexico City in the 1960s.
Old Gringo (United States), 1989.
Set during the Mexican Revolution, a frustrated spinster, a retired journalist, and a fiery young general are inexplicably drawn together as they face love, death and war.
Los olvidados — The Young and the Damned (Mexico), 1956.
Part social commentary, part surrealistic art, this film features a group of juvenile delinquents who live a violent and crime-filled life in the festering slums of Mexico City.
Que viva Mexico! (Soviet Union), 1931.
A film documentary of the history of Mexico by Soviet filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein presented in four novellas: Sandunga, an exposition of Tehuantepec jungles and the peaceful lifestyles of their inhabitants; Manguei, a love story about a poor peon and his bride; Fiesta, devoted to bullfighting and romantic love; and Soldadera, a portrayal of the 1910 revolution in Mexico as depicted in the frescoes of Siqueiros, Rivera, and Orosco.
Paulina (United States), 1997.
This is a documentary about the life of Paulina, a middle-aged maid from Mexico living in the US. She returns to the village of her parents to confront them and other town elders about the cycle of abuse she was subjected to as a child all because of her mother’s rash interpretation of an innocent bathing accident.
A Place Called Chiapas (Canada), 1998.
Documentary on the Zapatista uprising in Chiapas, Mexico filmed over an eight month period.
The San Patricios (United States), 1996.
During the U.S.-Mexican War of 1846, more than 500 immigrant soldiers, mostly Irish, deserted the U.S. Army and joined forces with Mexico.
Señorita extraviada (Mexico), 2001.
Over 250 young women were kidnapped, raped and murdered from the city of Juárez, Mexico. The perpetuators of these crimes have not been apprehended, even though these crimes have been occurring regularly since 1993.
The Ties that Bind: Immigration Stories (United States), 1996.
This program looks at the human drama behind current debate over U.S. immigration policy. Presents the story of people and immigrants on both sides of the Texas-Mexico border.
Trade Issues: the North American Partnership (Canada), 1992.
This episode examines the effects of the free trade agreement between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
¡Vámonos con Pancho Villa! (Mexico), 1936.
This classic of Mexican cinema follows the adventures of six young men who leave their rural homes to join Pancho Villa’s army. Together the men endure This classic of Mexican cinema follows the adventures of six young men who leave their rural homes to join Pancho Villa’s army. Together the men endure.
The Walls of Mexico: Art and Architecture (Belgium), 1996.
Documentary looks at the wall paintings of some of the most famous Mexican muralists–Diego Rivera, Juan O’Gorman, José Clemente Orozco–and at the work of Luis Barragán, the greatest Mexican architect of this century.
Y tu mamá también (Mexico), 2001.
Set in Mexico in 1999 during the period that marks the end of the seven-decade political domination of the country’s main political party, two teens set off on a wild cross-country trip with seductive, 28-year-old Luisa, who schools them in the finer points of passion, but will their mutual desire for her destroy their friendship forever?