''In the Times of Don Porfirio'' (Spanish:''En tiempos de Don Porfirio'') is a 1939 Mexican

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks ...

directed by

Juan Bustillo Oro Juan Bustillo Oro (2 June 1904 – 10 June 1989) was a Mexican film director, screenwriter and producer, whose career spanned over 38 years. Among his works there are ''In the Times of Don Porfirio'', ''Here's the Point'', '' Arm in Arm Down the ...

and starring

Fernando Soler Fernando Soler (born Fernando Díaz Pavia; 24 May 1896 – 25 October 1979) was a Mexican actor, director, screenwriter, and producer. He was considered one of the most important figures of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. In his career spanning ...

, Marina Tamayo,

Emilio Tuero Emilio Tuero Cubillas (5 April 1912 – 22 July 1971), known as Emilio Tuero, was a Spanish-Mexican actor, producer, and singer. He was considered a popular star of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. Filmography * '' Cri Cri el grillito canto ...

and

Joaquín Pardavé Joaquín Pardavé Arce (30 September 1900 – 20 July 1955) was a Mexican film actor, director, songwriter and screenwriter of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. He was best known for starring and directing various comedy films during the 1940 ...

. The film, adapted from a novel, nostalgically portrays the government of General and President

Porfirio Díaz José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori ( or ; ; 15 September 1830 – 2 July 1915), known as Porfirio Díaz, was a Mexican general and politician who served seven terms as President of Mexico, a total of 31 years, from 28 November 1876 to 6 Decem ...

, who is played by Antonio R. Frausto, who played him in several films. The film was the highest-grossing Mexican film of the year.

Cast

as don Francisco * Marina Tamayo as Carmen *

as Fernando Villanueva *

as don Rodrigo *

Dolores Camarillo Dolores Camarillo (March 31, 1910 – February 8, 1988) was a Mexican character actress of film, television, and theater. She also was a makeup artist for films, and was frequently billed as "Fraustita". Personal life The daughter of actors ...

as Chole *

Aurora Walker Aurora Walker García (1904–1964) was a Mexican film actress. She appeared in more than a hundred and twenty films during her career.Agrasánchez p.159 She was married to Mexican actor Julio Taboada until her death (suicide by electrocution) 2 ...

as doña Carlota * Agustín Isunza as Estebán * Lucha María Ávila as Carmen, niña *

Victoria Argota Victoria Argota was a Spanish-Mexican film actress.García Riera, p. 28, 129, 210 Selected filmography * ''In the Times of Don Porfirio'' (1940) * '' The Two Orphans'' (1944) * ''Michael Strogoff'' (1944) * ''My Memories of Mexico ''My Memories ...

as doña Etelvina * Conchita Gentil Arcos as doña Julia * Humberto Rodríguez *

Manuel Noriega Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno (; February 11, 1934 – May 29, 2017) was a Panamanian dictator, politician and military officer who was the ''de facto'' List of heads of state of Panama, ruler of Panama from 1983 to 1989. An authoritaria ...

Armando Velasco Armando Velasco (18 January 1918 – 29 September 1999) was an Ecuadorian-born Mexican actor who worked on the Golden Age of Mexican cinema, on films such as '' The Saint Who Forged a Country'' (1942), '' Historia de un gran amor'' (1942), and ...

as don Germán * Gerardo del Castillo * Emilio Romero * Adolfo Bernáldez * Manuel Pozos as don Luis *

Max Langler Max Langler was a Mexican film actorAgrasánchez p.158 who appeared in more than eighty productions during his career. Selected filmography * ''Judas'' (1936) * ''The Sign of Death'' (1939) * ''In the Times of Don Porfirio'' (1940) * ''The Unknow ...

as don Fulgencio * Manuel Zoca *

Julio Ahuet Julio Ahuet was a Mexican film actor. He appeared in more than a hundred and thirty films during his career, including ''Women Without Tomorrow'' (1951), ''Here Comes Martin Corona'' (1952), and the El Santo film ''Profanadores de tumbas'' (1966). ...

Roberto Cañedo Roberto Cañedo Ramírez (30 March 1919 – 16 June 1999), better known as Roberto Cañedo, was a Mexican actor of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. During his career, he appeared in over 300 films. Cañedo received two Ariel Award for Best Act ...

as Extra * Antonio R. Frausto as Porfirio Díaz *

José Elías Moreno José Elías Moreno (12 November 1910 – 15 July 1969) was a Mexican character actor. He appeared in more than 180 films between 1937 and 1969. He was from the state of Jalisco. His son of the same name, born in 1956, is also a successful a ...

as Invitado a baile * Aurora Ruiz as Sirvienta

Release and reception

The film was the highest-grossing Mexican film in its year of release at the box office. The author Carl J. Mora wrote that "the nostalgia it evoked of a simpler and more peaceful epoch could also be interpreted as a rejection by the middle class of the more socialistic aspects of the Revolution. The appearance in the film of such popular actors as Fernando Soler, the Spanish immigrant Emilio Tuero, and the fine comic actor Joaquín Pardavé were also potent factors in the movie's success. In their book ''Culture and Customs of Mexico'' - Peter Standish and Steven M. Bell describe the film as a "political extreme", in that the "film's nostalgia for the stable hierarchies of pre-Revolutionary days arguably provided some comfort to the sectors of society that felt threatened by the Cardenas government's land redistribution and nationalization programmes". Colin Gunckel, Jan-Christopher Horak and Lisa Jarvinen described the film as a "political revista that utilized zarzuela melodies popular during the Porfiriato". Jacqueline Avila compared it to '' Mexico de mis recuerdos'' (1944), describing them as "two noteworthy films that intertwine musical performances in the narratives and expose the social contradictions of Porfirian culture, particularly concerning women's roles".AVILA, JACQUELINE. “México de Mis Inventos: Salon Music, Lyric Theater, and Nostalgia in ‘Cine de Añoranza Porfiriana.’” Latin American Music Review / Revista de Música Latinoamericana, vol. 38, no. 1, University of Texas Press, 2017, pp. 1–27, http://www.jstor.org/stable/44862442.

References

Bibliography

* Segre, Erica. ''Intersected Identities: Strategies of Visualisation in Nineteenth- and Twentieth-century Mexican Culture''. Berghahn Books, 2007.

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0031271 1939 films 1930s historical musical films Mexican historical musical films 1930s Spanish-language films Films set in the 19th century Films directed by Juan Bustillo Oro Mexican black-and-white films