Y tu mama tambien “succeeds in painting a complex portrait of modern Mexican life” (Nuala Finnegan). Analyse the depiction of Mexican society offered in TWO film texts.
In response Nuala Finnegan’s statement I shall be looking at how Mexican society is depicted in Y Tu Mamá También (2001) and Amores perros (2000). I’ll discuss the films individually before concluding how both have illustrated Mexico.
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón Y Tu Mamá También tells the story of a road trip undertaken by two Mexican teenage boys and a Spanish woman in her late twenties. Beneath its coming of age, road movie exterior the film looks at different elements of contemporary Mexico.
The film opens with one of the adolescent males, Tenoch (played by Diego Luna) engaging in coitus with his girlfriend Ana (played by Ana López Mercado). She is about to go away on a trip to Italy with Cecilia, Julio’s girlfriend. The shot has a documentary/voyeuristic feel, it starts from behind a door and follows them in one handheld shot. Tenoch makes her promise that she’s ‘not going to fuck any Italians’. Before listing other races in a similar manner, he uses the word Gringo which is often associated with a negative connotation to Americans. He also lists a ‘Dirty Mexican selling bracelets on the street’ implying a class issue and divide. The room they are in is filled with books, which could symbolise education and wealth. In the background is the Spanish poster of Harold and Maude (1971), a film about a boy obsessed with death and his relationship with an older woman. Themes that come into play in this picture. Outside you can hear the sound of a siren, the problems lie outside of this room. From their perspective they go on unnoticed and impersonal. The camera leaves the room back behind the door and the sound cuts abruptly. A voiceover begins. voiced by an uncredited Daniel Giménez Cacho. The narration gives us a further insight into events, we learn that Ana’s mother does not object to her daughters relationship a contrast to Julio’s girlfriends parents (especially the father). These styles and techniques along with that level of subtext run throughout the entire movie.
We are now introduced to Julio, performed by Gael García Bernal a Mexican actor who got this role as a result of his performance in Amores perros. He is sitting awkwardly with his girlfriends father. The house is neat and clean. Cecilia (played by María Aura) calls Julio up to her room under the false pretence that she has lost her passport. Her room is adorned in pictures of animals, there is a stack of National Geographic magazines, photos and camera equipment. This establishes her interests, leaning towards more natural down to earth things a contrast to the room we saw the scene previous (possibly Ana’s). A level of innocence also comes across. They quickly engage in the same activity Tenoch and Ana were seen undertaking, quickly and half dressed. Both scenes feature the boys engaging in similar acts with elements of comedy but the subtext of both scenes illustrate where they stand in society and as a result how they are treated, with no pun intended for the audience seeds have been sown.
At the airport both the boys express that they ‘hate this goodbye bullshit’ while Ana and Cecilia are out of earshot. Unbeknownst to Tenoch and Julio, the girls also voice their desire to be on the plane. Then, when they say goodbye both parties express and display the exact opposite. This hypocrisy within the characters evolves as the film progresses.
We first meet Luisa at the wedding scene. The event takes place at a bull ring. The opening shot is of a security guard with two people in traditional (arguably cliché) Mexican dress. We get more shots of Security while Tenoch and Julio mock how many guards there are. The security are clearly under employment signalling that the attendants of this party are wealthy and fear danger possibly from outside this circle of the upper class. Older music is playing, up until now we have only heard contemporary Mexican music, notably from the radio in the car. The wedding is clean and saturated with these old stereotypes, a stark contrast to the Mexico we have seen the boys living in. Julio moves from Tenoch to the bar. As he orders his drink he comments to the barman ‘What a bunch of assholes, right?’ It is easier for him to establish rapport with someone younger and of a similar class to him rather than, the older wealthier attendants of the wedding, he can relate to him.
It is here Luisa enters. Performed by Maribel Verdú an actor who started off as a model. To quote Guillermo del Toro on the Pan’s Labyrinth commentary ‘known for sex bomb roles.’ She walks into frame wearing white allowing her to stand out amongst the palette of blacks and greys worn by other members of the wedding party. Julio notices her as she walks past alone and looking a little uncomfortable, we learn later from the narration that she finds herself unable to fit in at these sorts of parties. Unbeknownst to the audience we cut to her husband Jano, conversing with Tenoch, it is revealed he is his cousin and an author. He is patronizing and condescending to Tenoch, mocking him about a time when he lost a Ninja Turtle. Tenoch corrects him, explaining that it was a Thundercat. While this is minor it is interesting to note. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were ordinary Turtles until as a result of the Ooze they were transformed (On the assumption that we are referring to the 80’s television incarnations, and going by Tenoch’s age this seems likely). The Turtles seem to be teen-aged for the rest of the series and relish it. The main protagonist of the Thundercats, Lion-O has different origins. Escaping from his home planet as a child he slept in a suspended animation type chamber (to accommodate him in long distance space travel of course). When he landed on third earth he found his body had become that of a young man, even though he still had the mind of a boy. This characters main arc focuses on him becoming a man. The responsibilities of an adult thrown upon him, perhaps quicker than he would have liked. Tenoch’s story in this film involves one of growing up, more in keeping with the leader of the Thundercats rather than a Ninja Turtle, forever a teenager and viewed as immature (coincidently his cousins opinion of him). Julio and Tenoch track Luisa down and flirt with her cumbersomely. They are impressed to learn that she is Spanish. The narration informs us about Luisa’s life and how much death has been in it. We learn that her parents died in a car accident, her great-aunt who raised her also died. Later on we learn that her first boyfriend died in a motorbike accident, it is clear from her dialogue that she still possesses fond affections for him. The Mariachis arrive and we cut to a waiter. We see a family leaving with two young girls, while all the other guests look into the centre oblivious to the outside. This could be interpreted as society being too focused on a false image of its past (the film is set at the end of 71 years of presidents from the Institutional Revolutionary Party) and for the countries working class inhabitants an unnecessary one for the modern day.
The names of each of the main characters are very important. Tenoch’s surname is Iturbide, after Agustín Cosme Damián de Iturbide y Aramburu a Mexican general who fought against the Spanish colonists in the Mexican War of Independence. After the victory he then set to establish himself as emperor, this title lasted nearly a year. Julio’s surname is Zapata, after Emiliano Zapata a revolutionary who led the Ejército Libertador del Sur (Liberation Army of the South) against President Diaz. Luisa’s last name is Cortés after Hernán Cortés the Spanish Conquistador that led the first wave of colonizers against the Aztecs, she lives at 52 Machu Picchu street. Machu Picchu being arguably the most famous Inca city, in 1952 Che Guevara visited the site, documented in his diaries and the film adaptation The Motorcycle Diaries (2004, Dir Walter Salles). With these associations the characters can now be seen as Tenoch a representative of the Upper classes, Julio the lower and Luisa as a foreign conqueror, her presence is the catalyst of conflict between the boys allowing issues and prejudices to surface.
During the wedding Tenoch and Julio invite Luisa to come with them on a road trip to ‘Heaven’s Mouth’ a (from their perspective) fictional beach away from the tourists. She doesn’t seem terribly impressed. However following her visit to the hospital, we learn later that she is terminally ill and a phone call from Jano, letting her know he’s been unfaithful she decides to join them. In French the word orgasm (La petite mort) literally translates as ‘the little death’. On the journey our trios subject matter frequently revolves around sex, while death seems to surround them. It is a prominent part of Mexican culture (The Day of the Dead is a national holiday). Luisa’s aforementioned past and numerous sections where the narration interrupts the story often revolves around the subject.
During the trip they stay at a hotel. Tenoch Immediately grabs the biggest bed, leaving Julio with the smaller one. This could be seen as a metaphor for the land. Tenoch then uses the toilet, lifting the lid with his feet, referencing the narration earlier, though Julio is his best friend he does the same in his house. This small action can be taken as offensive as it shows that from Tenoch‘s perspective he sees Julio as dirtier and below him. A part of the narration brings up the fact that Tenoch does not know where his maid is from, despite her raising him as her son. He is out of touch with Mexico’s past and his own history.
Julio and Tenoch tell Luisa about their ‘Charolastra’ manifesto, all of the rules are fairly juvenile, with the exception of rule 5: You shall not screw another Charolastra’s girl. Despite the childish nature the rules are democratic, the homophobic derogative for Americans aside. As the film progresses though we learn that both males have betrayed rule 5, supposed to be loyal friends both of them have been hypocrites. If you take them as metaphors for society it shows that the laws established are being broken and the people are divided. When Luisa demands that they follow her manifesto her rules are akin to a totalitarian dictatorship. Though exaggerated and more of a rant than definite rules, politically she is akin to President Diaz. The Institutional Revolutionary Party (who are coming to the end of their 71 year run of Mexican presidents had been described by Mario Vargas Llosa as a ‘perfect dictatorship.’
As we follow the characters along the road we get shown many angles of Mexico, we see the rural and we get a sense of the damage tourism can do to indigenous skills and trades (notably the fishing family that take them to Heaven’s mouth). From the film we get the sense that the country is a little lost, struggling with its identity.
During one of the final scenes Julio and Tenoch are drinking with Luisa, they reflect on the things they have done and get along again. After drinking and dancing, our three main characters engage in intercourse. For a brief moment we have the upper class, the lower and the Spanish influence together. In the morning this has attitude/idea has completely dissipated. Luisa is outside enjoying breakfast with some of the fishing family, discussing places it is revealed they do not know the meanings of the their names. Another example of culture being lost. Julio and Tenoch awake in a bed naked and embarrassed. They both leave that day while Luisa stays behind, she has excepted that she is dying and is happy to leave them. The last scene features the boys going for a coffee, we learn that they broke up with their girlfriends. The narration tells us that Tenoch started dating his neighbour while Julio started dating a girl in his class and that they ceased spending time with each other this hints that they are now engrossed into worlds based on their social class. It is also the first time in 71 years the ruling party lost its vote in the presidential election. Tenoch tells Julio that Luisa has passed away. You learn Tenoch is taking Economics at a University rather than his earlier want to be a writer, a sign that he his conforming to his parents wants. Julio is starting a college, a more affordable place to study, they have been divided. The last shot shows Tenoch walk away, separated by the café window he his standing higher than Julio in the frame, leaving his former friend with the cheque. It is somewhat subtle but Julio, the films representative of the middle and lower classes is left to deal with the actions of Tenoch, representative of the upper classes while the Spanish influence has now left.
Y Tu Mamá También was marketed as a teenage road movie. Meaning that a lot of the younger generation would have seen it. As a result of the younger generation making up the highest population in Mexico this tends to be its cinemas target audience. By using these characters to represent angles of Mexican society it allows the viewers to observe the problems its country faces and where it might be going, under a safe guise.
Amores Perros (2000) is the first feature length film by Alejandro González Iñárritu. The film is occasionally translated as ‘Love’s a Bitch’, while the literal interpretation is closer to ‘Dog Love’. The story focuses on three lives within Mexico city. Each story is connected by a car accident and involves at least one dog. The film gives a fairly grim portrayal of Mexican life, with violence prevalent. With its non linear narrative, strong violence and depictions of crime that this film is often compared to Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction. However this film carries a darker tone.
Much like Y Tu Mamá También this film shows a separation between classes. The first time we see Valeria (played by Goya Toledo) is after the car crash. She is wounded and bleeding but trapped behind glass, cut off from everyone else. Next she is on a large billboard elevated above the city, projecting a very western idea of beauty. Daniel (Álvaro Guerrero) observes her from his car, she is higher up, clean and polished. In the car is his family, his wife appears stressed and the children are bickering. Valeria looks like a fantasy, unreal.
Later she appears on Octavio‘s television. She is on a chat show introducing her partner, a well groomed male actor. Later, we learn this is a front. We get introduced to Richie her little dog, it is jokingly referred to as her child. This is not too far from the truth. In reality she treats her pet somewhere between a baby and a handbag, a pampered, spoilt accessory. Valeria seems distanced from the real world entirely. Her new apartment is self focused. Her billboard can be seen from the window and there are prints of her photos on the walls. The film appears to punish her for this. When she greets Daniel her foot falls through the floorboards, literally putting her foot in it. This foreshadows her leg injury. There are cracks underneath the surface, this success is fragile. Underneath the floorboards are rats running around, they could be metaphor for the lower classes far below Valeria. We cut from her embracing Daniel to El Chivo playing with a Yoyo. If the city is a hand and the people a Yoyo it can have people either up or down quickly, two extremes. Personally I like to think that by showing El Chivo playing with one it is illustrating him starting to take back some control of his life as future events reveal, but I digress.
Valeria volunteers to get the wine to toast her new apartment and leaves in her car. Again we see her detachment to the city, her music is loud and reminiscent of the sixties, she nominates the traffic lights the ideal opportunity to apply makeup. The whole scene looks somewhat similar to a kitsch, bohemian car advert. She is in the centre of her saturated fantasy world. We see the crash this time from the perspective of onlookers, the camera and therefore the audience sees the event this time with the city, not with Valeria. The accident leaves her maimed with a damaged leg and we begin to see her world collapse. When she arrives back at the flat one of the first things Daniel does is throw her on the bed and attempts to initiate intercourse. He sees her as an image rather than a person and soon becomes frustrated with this new situation. Later the phone rings and when Valeria answers no voice is heard. Like in an earlier scene when Daniels family answers the phone, this hints that Daniel is being unfaithful. Richie then runs into the hole in floor, trapped with the rats. This mirrors Valeria’s own position she is trapped, her apartment originally a symbol of her success gradually becomes her prison. The Venetian blinds in the last shot help accent this. A balloon with I love you written on it soon deflates. As time passes her legs gains gangrene and has to be amputated, judging from the images of her modelling it was a prime selling point. She returns back to the apartment wearing black (a colour of mourning) and a blue blanket covering her lower half. He hair is tied back. Her image is reminiscent of the works of Frida Kahlo notably Le Due Frida (1939). A number of her self portraits would feature her sitting, depicting graphic injuries. Kahlo was a Mexican painter who was born and died in Mexico city, her life was surrounded by tragedy, at a young age she got polio causing one of her legs to grow smaller than the other. She was involved in a traffic accident that left her with serious injuries. As a result of her injuries she was often bed ridden for lengthy periods of time during her life. Her relationship with Diego Rivera was rife with affairs and tempers. While Frida’s work and life however receives recognition today, Valeria seems to be left behind. Her apartment is cold and the floor is now wrecked. The billboard is no longer a symbol of her career but an image of better times her perfume advertisement has being taken down, not even replaced but left empty, ready for hire.
Both these films explore how different classes effect one another, but while Y Tu Mamá También occasionally shows glimpses of change, a chance of coexisting Amores Perros Portrays a grim image of Mexican society, nearly every character ends up in a worse position at the end than the start. Both films generate conflict from examples of classes crossing paths, quite literally with Valeria. As a result she suffers a tragic fall from grace, becoming a victim of the city. Tenoch and Julio, begin as best friends but by the end struggle to communicate with each other. Even as El Chivo leaves the city with a chance of redemption he walks along a cracked path.
Carl
Bibliography
ART
Khalo, F. Le Due Frida (1939).
Books
Noble, A. Mexican National Cinema (2005)
Powell, J. (1998) Postmodernism For Beginners.
Wood, J. Talking movies : contemporary world filmmakers in interview (2006)
Wood, J. The Faber Book of Mexican Cinema (2006)
Films
Ashby, H. Harold and Maude (1971)
Cuarón, A. Y Tu Mamá También (2001)
Del Toro, G. Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
González Iñárritu, A. Amores Perros (2000)
Salles, W. The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
Tarantino, Q. Pulp Fiction (1994)
