Mexican Triptych.
This month Jenn and I are all about South American legend/folklore with a deep dive into the cinematic adaptations of La Llorona. Last week we kicked things off with a primer (listen here) that provided some historical context, and now we’re into the first of September’s four titles.
Released in 1933, Ramón Peón’s La Llorona (or The Crying Woman) is among the first Mexican horror films produced in sound. The film stars Ramón Pereda in a dual role in a triptych narrative that spans three generations wherein the men of a prominent household are haunted by a dangerous curse.
What’s impressive about the film – apart from its great “ghostly” FX when women die and become embodiments of La Llorona – is that it actually addresses the misogynistic and colonial elements of the legend, including the affair between Conquistador Hernán Cortés and Aztec “Princess” La Malinche.
While Jenn and I disagree on the film’s messaging, it was far more interesting than we expected considering it’s the oldest text we’ve covered on the podcast to date (listen to our anniversary ep).
The film is worth checking out, and it’s available for free on YouTube if you want make up your own mind. Also: as an added incentive, the film’s contemporary storyline includes no less than a child abductor in a ninja outfit, multiple secret passageways in a Gothic mansion, and two overly long sequences set at a) a wedding and b) a children’s birthday party!
If you want even more Murder Made Fiction, be sure to check out the pod’s Patreon feed, where Jenn and I have ~90 hours of content including episodes dedicated to documentary The Devil on Trial, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, The Haunted and The Conjuring: Last Rites, along with episode by episode coverage of Hulu’s The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox.
The post Mexican Film ‘The Crying Woman’ Tackled La Llorona in 1933 [Murder Made Fiction] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.
