Golden ? Mexico

Nathaniel here! I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Soon I should pop up at my own web home more than once a day again. A big thank you to loyal reader Paxton who sent in the list of the 11 official contenders for the Mexican Oscar submission this year that you'll see in the southern hemisphere of this post. Mexico has been nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film 7 times. The honored films were:

Macario (Gavaldón, 1960)

The Important Man (Rodríguez, 1961)
Tlayucan also known as: The Pearl of Tlayucan (Alcoriza, 1962)
Letters From Marusia (Littin, 1975)
Amores Perros (Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu, 2000)
The Crime of Father Amaro (Carrera, 2002)
Pan's Labyrinth (Del Toro, 2006)

As you can see there, Mexican cinema has recently caught Oscar's fancy again after that long dry spell that followed Mexico's triple play in the 1960s. The resurgence has a lot to do with these four men.


Pictured from left: Gonzalez Iñárritu who has had both a foreign nominee (Amores Perros) and a reg'lar old Best Picture nominee (Babel); everyone's favorite Mexican movie star Gael Garcia Bernal (who kicked off the Aughts with back-to-back-to-back arthouse hits), Guillermo Del Toro who after years of cult favor has rather successfully branded himself for the mainstream as a creepy creature feature kind of pop force; and the best filmmaker of the group Alfonso Cuaron who has yet to win a foreign film, a director or a Best Picture nod but whose films are well known and often well regarded. Only one of these four men might be involved in this year's Oscars.

Mexico has yet to win the Foreign Film Oscar but Pan's Labyrinth obviously lost its race in a squeaker (if its 3 other Oscars are any indication). This year's submission possibilities (links go to official site or video footage) are:

• Arráncame la vida. Roberto Sneider adapts the period novel from Ángeles Mastretta.
• Cochochi's claim to fame is that it's an indigenous drama spoken in Tarahumara. You don't see that every day... or, well, ever. Laura Amelia Guzmán & Israel Cárdenas's film has a certain relaxed fly on the wall vibe but I can't say that I'm a fan. Having seen it I can assure you that Oscar won't go for it. It's too alien in feel without that exotic pull that can get AMPAS interested in a foreign culture in the absence of more familiar strengths like acting, epic atmosphere or Hollywood plotting.
  
• Cumbia Connection is a Monterrey set urban musical from director René Villarreal.
  
• Déficit. Gael García Bernal gets behind the camera. His directorial debut concerns the wealthy set in a tourist hotspot. Bernal's starpower will make Oscar voters curious at the very least.
  
• Two Embraces. Enrique Begné directs this split drama.
• Nonna's Trip from Sebastián Silva is a family comedy about a simulated vacation.
• Familia tortuga Directed by Rubén Imaz. A drama about family loss.
  
• La zona a class warfare drama from Rodrigo Plá.

• Lake Tahoe. This teen drama is the sophomore film from Duck Season director Fernando Eimbcke. It won the Alfredo Baeur Award @ Berlin. I haven't seen it but I'm sorta rooting for it already given my instant crush on Eimbcke. It all began in Toronto in September 2004... sigh. Seriously, he's a doll. And if you still haven't seen Duck Season, it's not for the lack of me preaching for it.
  
• Partes usadas Mexico loves teen movies this year. This one, directed by Aarón Fernández, involves car part thieves.
• Burn the Bridges. (see previous post) When I was on the jury at IIFF this spring, we gave the young lead actress our only acting prize. She's very affecting.

Can we hear from any readers who've seen these? Which ones are you rooting for? If you haven't seen these, cast a really uninformed vote. That's what everyone does in the foreign language category, ya know.
*