LIMITED SERIES DAMAS DE LA PANTALLA: THE WOMEN OF MEXICO'S ÉPOCA DE ORO JUN 28–JUL 15, 2024
María Candelaria ( Portrait of Maria , 1944)
In the book Beauties of Mexican Cinema (2001), writer Rogelio Agrasánchez proclaims “the history of Mexican cinema is intimately linked with the cult of its female stars,” and it is truly las mujeres of Mexico’s Golden Age of cinema— Dolores del Río, María Félix, Estela Inda, María Elena Marqués, Leticia Palma, and Ninón Sevilla, among others—who define the collective memory of this two-decade period in the country’s film history. Thanks to the establishment of the Banco Cinematográfico and Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Good Neighbor Policy, Mexico saw sustained resources for cinema projects from 1935 to 1955, and these popular films massively benefitted from the birth of a national star system, the growth of radio, and an uptick in the publication of movie magazines. The accessibility of these femmes fatales , rumberas , indígenas , doñas , and reinas alike created widespread, collective identification with these stars. This series pays homage to just a handful of the most influential damas de la pantalla (ladies of the screen) of Mexico’s Época de oro. Programmed and notes by K.J. Relth-Miller.
Generously supported by Televisa Foundation-Univision Foundation in celebration of Mexican Cinema.
María Candelaria ( Portrait of Maria ) Fri, Jun 28 | 7:30pm | TMT Restoration World Premiere
B&W. Spanish. DCP. Restored in 2024 by the Academy Film Archive, TelevisaUnivision, Filmoteca UNAM, and The Film Foundation's World Cinema Project. Restoration funding provided by the Material World Foundation. Screening courtesy of Televisa Foundation–Univision Foundation. La otra ( The Other One ) Mon, Jul 1 | 7:30pm | TMT Brilliant filmmaker Roberto Gavaldón collaborated with screenwriter José Revueltas to create this distinctly Mexican variant on the time-honored Evil Twin plot: this time, it’s the great Dolores del Río as both a meek, bespectacled manicurist and her mercenary, man-eating sister. But in this case, envy proves to be a greater sin than avarice. The film was based on an unproduced screenplay commissioned for Bette Davis, who eventually made her version in 1964— Dead Ringer , directed by Paul Henreid. DIRECTED BY: Roberto Gavaldón. WRITTEN BY: Roberto Gavaldón, José Revueltas. WITH: Dolores del Río, Agustín Irusta, Víctor Junco, José Baviera. 1946. 98 min. Mexico. B&W. Spanish. DCP. Digital copy provided by Filmoteca UNAM.
Set among the waterways of Xochimilco on the outskirts of Mexico City, Emilio “El Indio” Fernández’s masterpiece from Mexico’s Época de oro finds sensation Dolores del Río (1904–1983) in one of her first Mexican films after a 20-year stint in Hollywood. Starring against type as humble indígena María, del Río’s exquisite features, stripped of her usual glamorous makeup, are lovingly lensed by revered director of photography Gabriel Figueroa. This tragedy of star-crossed lovers took home a Grand Prix at the first-ever Cannes Film Festival in 1946 and a trophy for Figueroa’s cinematography, helping bring international attention to the filmmaking team and establish Mexico as a major player on the world cinema stage. DIRECTED BY: Emilio Fernández. WRITTEN BY: Mauricio Magdaleno, Emilio Fernández. WITH: Dolores del Río, Pedro Armendáriz, Alberto Galán, Margarita Cortés. 1943. 102 min. Mexico.
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