Golden Age of Mexican cinema

Among the actors who attained the status of idols in the Mexican cinema, arguably Pedro Infante stands out the most. His first films were not aimed toward creating a myth. The result of his meeting with the director Ismael Rodríguez in the film Nosotros los Pobres (1947), served to consolidate the figure of Infante within the mythology of Mexican cinema. For many, Infante represented what every Mexican should be: a dutiful son, an unconditional friend, a romantic lover. In the extensive gallery of stars of Mexican cinema, Pedro Infante is the only one who could unify public sentiment. His popularity has continued to grow as new generations are born. His figure remains the most important in Mexican cinema.[6]

María Félix in 1947. In 1986 received the Golden Ariel for her career.

Another one of the early mass idols in Mexican cinema was Jorge Negrete. In addition to his role as an actor, Negrete was also a prominent singer and one of the leading representatives of Mexican ranchera music. Negrete was one of the highest grossing actors of Latin American Cinema during almost the entire decade of the 1940s. His premature death led to collective mourning in Mexico.

María Félix was an exceptional case in the Mexican Cinema. A woman of a stunning physical beauty and strong personality, who immediately dominated the roles as a "femme fatale" in Mexican movies. Before the success of María Félix, women were in supporting roles (self-sacrificing mothers, submissive girlfriends). Based on the success of Félix, more movies with female themes began to be made. The film Doña Bárbara (1943), began the myth of María Félix as La Doña. The unique real personality of María merged with her on-screen personality leading to one of the most fascinating myths of the seventh art. Her legend was forged without her lifting a finger.[7] The imagination of the people did all the work.

Katy Jurado in 1953. In 1997 received the Golden Ariel for her career.

Dolores del Río at her best moments, represented one of the highest ideals of the Mexican female beauty. The myth of Dolores del Río did not begin in Mexico, but in Hollywood, where the actress reached the status of "Diva" in the 1920s and 1930s, very difficult for an actress of Hispanic origin. After a more than worthy career in Hollywood, Dolores returned to Mexico, where she managed to maintain and even raise the prestige that she enjoyed in the American film industry, thanks to a series of films made especially for her, by her eternal admirer, the filmmaker Emilio Fernández, where he stripped away the stony image acquired in Hollywood and highlighted her indigenous features. Films like Wild Flower and María Candelaria(1943), spread the image of Mexico around the world, and Dolores del Río became a national symbol, after being, for many years, a symbol of "the Mexican" abroad.

One of the faces that captivated the audiences was Pedro Armendariz. Although he did not have any indigenous roots whatsoever, Armendáriz managed to embody the Mexican essence better than any other actor in Mexico. This shared appreciation from historians, critics, colleagues and admirers, is based significantly on the characters that the actor starred as under the direction of Emilio Fernandez.[8] Later, Armendáriz dabbled in Hollywood and some European countries.[9]

Arturo de Córdova was another prominent male figure in Mexican Cinema. His specialty was the roles of tormented men who often sank into madness. His good looks and contrived elegance made him famous. He was certainly one of the most requested heartbreakers by Hispanic women. He had always surrounded himself with female beauties, while his graying temples were becoming a personal and non-transferable trademark.

Arturo de Córdova in 1943.

Mario Moreno, Cantinflas, was a comedian and mime, who emerged from the popular theater. He achieved great popularity in the cinema with his portrayal of the character Cantinflas, a charismatic poor man, a "friendly neighbor" with quite a peculiar speech. The character of Cantinflas was to Mario Moreno as The Tramp was to Charles Chaplin. But unlike Chaplin, Cantinflas based his character on joy, rather than melancholy. His characters were always exhilaratingly funny. Cantinflas enjoyed remarkable success.

Charlie Chaplin once commented that Cantinflas was the best comedian alive,[10][11] and Moreno has been referred to as the "Charlie Chaplin of Mexico".[12]

Another successful star was the comedian Germán Valdés, "Tin Tan". He was a great versatile actor and excellent singer. He became famous for portraying the character of The Pachuco (a cultural movement of the 1940s and 1950s, originating in El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, and migrated into Los Angeles, where it developed further). His films were mainly based on parody and absurd situations, skilled musical numbers portraying visual mischief with an attractive female. "Tin Tan" had a huge cultural impact among some sectors of the Mexican public, and his films reached the status of cult films.[13]

Statue of Germán Valdés Tin Tan on Génova Street in the "Zona Rosa" of Mexico City.

Some other Mexican figures achieved recognition for foreign level. Katy Jurado became an important and sought-after actress in the Hollywood films (primarily in the Western film ), achieving recognition as the Golden Globe (1952) and a nomination for Academy Award of the American Film Academy (1954).[14] Meanwhile, Silvia Pinal achieved recognition in the field of "art cinema", especially thanks to her collaborations with the filmmaker Luis Buñuel. The film Viridiana (1961), probably the most legendary film in Buñuel's cinematography, was headlined by Pinal. Awarded with the Golden Palm of Cannes Film Festival, Viridiana captured Pinal in the history of world cinema. Beautiful, charismatic and endowed with a wonderful versatility, Pinal enjoyed a successful career spanning several decades in the Mexican stardom.[15]

Sara García, called "Mexico's Grandmother", deserves special mention. She was an outstanding actress who possessed great versatility and a strong dramatic intensity. She is, just as Cantinflas and Tin Tan, a part of Mexican popular culture, and her fame stands the test of time.

Among the most prominent actresses in Mexican cinema in its heyday were Columba Dominguez, one of the main muses of filmmaker Emilio Fernández. Endowed with a strong appeal, she worked in leading, internationally renowned bands such as Pueblerina (1949). Miroslava was a dazzling beauty of European origin who achieved fame in Mexican cinema between late 1940 and the mid-1950s, before dying tragically in 1955. Marga López was an important and outstanding actress with a very broad acting range. The dazzling Elsa Aguirre was one of the most important "femme fatales" of the Mexican film industry. Another important actress was Gloria Marín, who enjoyed a large following in the early 1940s thanks in part to her famous pairing with Jorge Negrete in a series of romantic movies. María Elena Marqués was another important actress with a strong personality. Among the dazzling beauties that flooded the Mexican screens were also Esther Fernández, Rosario Granados, Rosita Quintana, Rita Macedo, Emilia Guiú, Alma Rosa Aguirre or Lilia Prado, among many others.

Silvia Pinal in 2008 received the Golden Ariel for her career.

Among the best actresses who shone in this period was Carmen Montejo, an actress with an impeccable presence in film, theater and television. Meanwhile, Andrea Palma was considered the first "Diva" of Mexican Cinema, immortalized in the beginning of the Mexican film industry as The Woman of the Port, and later specialized in roles as a sophisticated prostitute. Emma Roldán was one of the pioneers of the Mexican film industry with a career spanning more than a hundred films. Meanwhile, Prudencia Grifell, a veteran revue star in the 1920s, was immortalized (with Sara García) in Granny roles in the films.

Elsa Aguirre in 2003 she received the Golden Ariel for her career.

As Mexico was the main film industry in the Spanish-speaking countries, its industry attracted other important figures from other Hispanic film industries. The most important were the Spanish Sara Montiel, who achieved international renown after making a name for herself in Mexican cinema during the first half of the 1950s, and Argentinean Libertad Lamarque, who after leaving her country in 1947 after an award-winning career in Argentine cinema, settled in Mexico, where she made most of her films and practically remained active for the rest of her life. From Spain there were other such actors, like Jorge Mistral, Armando Calvo or Lola Flores; from Argentina there were Niní Marshall and Luis Aldás. From Cuba there were René Cardona, Rita Montaner or Rosita Fornes, while Irasema Dilián was imported from Italian Cinema.

Among the greatest actors was Ignacio López Tarso, one of the most versatile Latin American actors who had a very prominent film, television and stage career. López Tarso was the protagonist of Macario (1959), first Mexican film nominated for an Academy Award of the American Academy.[16] The Soler Brothers: Domingo, Andrés, Fernando and Julián Soler, were probably some of the Mexican actors with the most movies in their careers. In a great variety of roles, both dramatic and comic, their talent prevailed in their films. David Silva reached an enormous popularity to embody the hero of lower-class neighborhoods and in numerous films of social Film or urban cinema. Emilio Tuero was one of the first film heartthrobs with massive success in the Mexican film industry in the early 1940s. Roberto Cañedo was an actor with a very long film career that spanned more than fifty years in film, theater and television. Fernando Fernandez besides being an outstanding singer, achieved enormous popularity in musical films incarnating roles of good and noble man.

Irma Dorantes

Many other comedians achieved consecration in Mexican cinema. From comic slapstick couples (in the style of Laurel and Hardy) to independent actors who achieved a huge poster. Many of these comedians emerged from the called Carpas or Mexican popular theaters. Joaquín Pardavé, was a popular actor who captivated with the same dramatic or comic characters. Pardavé was also a composer and film director, and his beginnings in the industry, from the Silent films, made him a "symbolic father" of all Mexican comedians from the thirties to the sixties.

Antonio Espino y Mora, better known as Clavillazo was another Mexican actor who began his career in the Carpas. More than 30 films are in his repertoire and is one of the most beloved and remembered artists. Another artist who started in the Carpas and also his sympathy, noted for his picturesque way of dancing was Adalberto Martínez "Resortes", who had a long career, then worked for over 70 years in film and television.

Gaspar Henaine and Marco Antonio Campos better known as "Viruta and Capulina" were a comic duo that were found in the form of white humor win the affection of the people. Viruta and Capulina began their career together in 1952, although individually had worked on other projects. They filmed more than 25 films.[17]

Although they do not have a large number of films together, Manuel Palacios "Manolín" and Estanislao Shilinsky Bachanska are remembered for their great chemistry in the theaters and later in the films.

Lilia Prado actress and dancer. In 1999 received the Golden Ariel for her career.

The Musical film genre in Mexico was strongly influenced by the Mexican folk music or Ranchero music. Stars as Pedro Infante, Jorge Negrete, Luis Aguilar and Antonio Aguilar made dozens of musical films of these gender who served as a platform to promote Mexican music. The songs of important composers like Agustín Lara or José Alfredo Jiménez served as the basis for the arguments of many films. Libertad Lamarque also highlighted by her performances where music and songs were the main protagonists.

The tropical music that was popular in Mexico and Latin America since the 1930s, and was also reflected in Mexican cinema. Numerous music magazines were made in the 1940s and 1950s. In these productions it was common to see figures ranging from Damaso Perez Prado, Toña la Negra, Rita Montaner, María Victoria or Los Panchos. However, the musical film in Mexico was mostly represented by the so-called Rumberas film, a unique cinematic curiosity of Mexico, dedicated to the film exaltation of the figure of the "rumba" (dancers of Afro-Antillean rhythms). The main figures of this genre were Cubans María Antonieta Pons, Amalia Aguilar, Ninón Sevilla and Rosa Carmina and Mexican Meche Barba. Between 1938 and 1965 more than one hundred Rumberas films were made.

In Mexico, the Film Noir genre popular in Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s was represented by the actor and director Juan Orol. Inspired by the popular Gangster film and figures like Humphrey Bogart and Edward G. Robinson, Orol created a filmic universe and a particular style by mixing elements of classic Film Noir with Mexican folklore, urban environments, cabaret, and tropical music. Examples include the classic film Gangsters Versus Cowboys (1948).

Ignacio López Tarso played the title character Macario, in the supernatural drama film Macario. It was the first Mexican film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.[18]

Although the 1960s are considered the Golden Age of Horror and science fiction in Mexican cinema, during the Golden Age they were found some remarkable works. Chano Urueta, a prolific director who began in the silent era, had had their approaches with the supernatural in Desecration (1933) and The Sign of Death (1939), however his greatest contributions come with The Amazing Beast (1952), film that first introduced the wrestlers in the genre. Other works in the genre would La Bruja (1954), Ladrón de Cadáveres (1956), the trilogy El Jinete sin cabeza (1957), the terror western, The Baron of Terror (1962) and The Living Head(1963).

Fernando Mendez was the most prolific filmmaker in the Horror films of the era. His most successful film was El vampiro (1957), starring Germán Robles, lead actor of the genre for the next two decades. Another actors highlights of gender were Abel Salazar, Lorena Velázquez and Ariadne Welter.

Among the major filmmakers who contributed to consolidate the Mexican cinema in its Golden Age include the following:

• Miguel Contreras Torres: Was one of the pioneers of Mexican cinema, where he started working in 1926. The only Mexican director who managed to make the transition from silent to talkies. The complete filmography of Contreras Torres speaks of a man interested in exalting nationalism and patriotism, from cinema. In essence, they are basically three thematic lines that built his career: national history, religious themes and manners. Although not the only, indeed, in the Mexican case, Contreras Torres which penetrates with greater emphasis on the exaltation of the historical facts of his country. The filmography of Miguel Contreras Torres, in this brief and incomplete review, spanned more than 45 years in which he participated in more than 50 films.[19]
• Fernando de Fuentes: Pioneer of talkies and director of three classic Mexican films: El compadre Mendoza (1933), Vámonos con Pancho Villa (1936) and Allá en el Rancho Grande (1936), Fernando de Fuentes is one of the most famous and least understood figures of Mexican film industry. Comments about his career almost always point out as an author who decided to stop being to become an efficient producer of grossing films, his films artificially dividing into two periods characterized by the presence or absence of aesthetic pretensions. Vámonos con Pancho Villa his masterpiece, was misunderstood for decades. The film was released three months after Allá en el Rancho Grande and only stayed one week in theaters. Success and failure occurred at the same time. Fernando de Fuentes was actually the first Mexican director who understood the nature of talkies and successfully took advantage of all the possibilities of this medium.[20]
• Alejandro Galindo: During the Golden Age, the rising urban Mexico had in Alejandro Galindo one of its most faithful film chroniclers. Possessing a special talent to recreate the behaviors and the popular speech of the Mexico City, Galindo was a director capable of creating his own universe from characters and situations representative of modern Mexico. From Campeón sin corona (1945) Alejandro Galindo initiated the most important stage of his career, in which the actor David Silva was instrumental. Boxers, taxi drivers, bus drivers from vendors vacuum cleaners, the new Mexican middle class was found on the screen known characters in their environment. Una familia de tantas (1948) represented the peak of this period in which Galindo creative genius combined with a successful business sense.[21]
• Emilio Fernández: One of the most important, influential and recognized filmmakers in this stage of Mexican cinema. Emilio was the creator of a Mexican film folk and indigenous type that contributed to the cultural and artistic discovery that Mexico lived in the 1940s, possessing an impeccable and unique aesthetic (achieved largely thanks to his principal photographer Gabriel Figueroa). Emilio Fernández bequeathed a filmography totaling around 129 jobs, countless beautiful images, hundreds of evocations of a Mexico that was planned, customs and identity, defended at all costs. A path that was recognized on several occasions with Silver Ariel, the Colón de Oro in Huelva, Spain, and a chair with his name on the Moscow Film School, among many other international awards. Emilio Fernandez was not only known for his visceral character, but also to achieve integration of a film crew that caught the attention of Hollywood and Europe. Gabriel Figueroa as a photographer, Mauricio Magdaleno as a screenwriter and the actors Pedro Armendariz, Dolores del Río, Columba Domínguez and María Félix, directed several productions who they promoted customs and national values associated to the Mexican Revolution.

• Roberto Gavaldón: Roberto Gavaldón represents one of the most extraordinary cases of ambivalent appreciation that recorded the history of Mexican cinema. His admirers include the refined quality of his images, his impeccable handling the camera and his inclination towards dark themes and tormented characters. The same characteristics have been identified as defects by critics, who consider Gavaldón as a technically correct academic filmmaker, cold and even narcissistic, but lacking authenticity. During the Golden Age, Roberto Gavaldón was recognized for his technical and artistic qualities. His habit of retakes to achieve the effect or nuance of performance that brought him fame wanted obsessive and perfectionist. Dry and authoritarian character, Gavaldón imposed a strict code of behavior on film sets, reason why some technicians and actors referred to him with the descriptive nickname "The Ogre". However, the antipathies that awoke his character were offset by admiration and respect for his work. Gavaldón films were synonymous with quality and working with him was considered a true honor.[22]

Luis Buñuel

• Ismael Rodríguez: Restless, imaginative, bold and possessing a unique flair for the blockbuster, Ismael Rodriguez was indisputably the director of the Mexican people. With his brothers (Joselito and Roberto), founded Películas Rodríguez producer of long and successful career. Popular filmmaker par excellence among his merits is having taken advantage of the histrionic possibilities of Pedro Infante, actor who directed sixteen times, including the ranchera comedy Los tres García (1946) and urban melodramas Nosotros los Pobres (1947), Ustedes los ricos (1948) and Pepe el Toro (1952), trilogy that reached the category of myth. In addition to various national and international awards, Ismael Rodriguez received a 1992 Golden Ariel for the significance of his work.[23]
• Julio Bracho: Julio Bracho was one of the most important directors of Mexican cinema in the forties and fifties. His style, has often been described as intellectual and ambiguous, and he directed several films sometimes mentioned among the best of Mexican cinema. His wide and cultured sensibility, gave another dimension to melodrama in film.[24]
• Luis Buñuel: Sometimes called the "Father of Surrealist Cinema", a significant portion of Buñuel's extensive filmography was filmed in Mexico and contributed greatly to the creative energy of Mexican cinema during the second stage of its Golden Age in the 1950s. Buňuel was known for an often acerbic style laced with social satire. Previously as a member of the surrealist group in Paris in the late 1920s, the Spanish-born Buñuel, achieved notoriety with two controversial avant garde films done in collaboration with Salvador Dalí, Un chien andalou (1929) and L'Age d'Or (1930). After a long hiatus from directing, he re-located to Mexico in the late 1940s, becoming a citizen, and made a long string of films there, some of which are amongst his most highly regarded. Los Olvidados (1950), whose stark depiction of juvenile delinquency in the slums of Mexico city became the subject of much controversy in Mexico, nonetheless had an sizable impact at the 1951 Cannes Film Festival. Several of Buñuel's other notable films made in Mexico during the 1950s were Él (This Strange Passion) (1952), Ensayo de un crimen (1955), and Nazarín (1958). As the Mexican film industry began to decline, Buñuel returned to making films in France and Spain. His last two films made in Mexico were El ángel exterminador (1962), and Simon del desierto (1965).
• Juan Orol: He was known as the "King of Mexican Gangster films" and has been called the "Involuntary Surrealist". Pioneer of the Mexican talkies and one of the main promoters of called Rumberas film. Family melodramas to rumberas and gangsters movies, the Orol's film universe is surreal and full of flaws in some sense; why his films have been described as a Cult films. That has given his films an important place in Mexican cinema.

• Gabriel Figueroa
• Alex Phillips
• Rosalío Solano
• Carlos Savage

• Luis Alcoriza
• Arcady Boytler
• Luis Buñuel
• Juan Bustillo Oro
• Humberto Gómez Landero
• Antonio Guzmán Aguilera
• Mauricio Magdaleno