And in a completely, utterly unrelated train of thought (although now I'm thinking of some great metaphors), I finally watched A Day Without a Mexican. A++ for effort. It was so cheesy I had to love it. Fog envelopes the state of California, and anyone with any Mexican heritage mysteriously disappears! California falls into near anarchy -- gasp! There were even two little "mysteries" throughout the movie -- why don't the half-Mexican girl and the Mexican TV reporter disappear?
The only slightly annoying things were the condescending statistics and comments displayed inconsistently throughout the film. Little things like the number of Latino teachers, percentages of agricultural workers, American history anecdotes about Mexican territory, etc. I think the viewers get the point. Two other minor things made me uncomfortable: using the term "the disappeared" (too close to real-life human rights abuses), and the vague implication that La Raza is a genetically proven "race."
Obviously, the filmmakers were trying to emphasize a point about labor. There, they succeeded. But they tried, rather flimsily, to incorporate a commentary about culture and identity. That's where the movie failed, I think. It sort of assumed that everyone with Mexican heritage either identifies as Mexican or is proud of that background; it came dangerously close to perpetuating the notion of a "One-Drop Rule."
My favorite cultural tie-in, though, was the Rapture sub-plot: all the Mexicans disappearing triggers fears among fundamentalist Christians that the Rapture has happened, and they are left behind to try and survive the biblical tribulations. Kirk Cameron should've had a cameo. It was hilarious! As was the inclusion of alien conspiracy theorists.
No comments:
Post a Comment