''Viva Zapata!'' is a 1952 American

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film directed by

Elia Kazan Elia Kazan (; born Elias Kazantzoglou ( el, Ηλίας Καζαντζόγλου); September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003) was an American film and theatre director, producer, screenwriter and actor, described by ''The New York Times'' as "one o ...

and starring

Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he received numerous accolades throughout his career, which spanned six decades, including two Academ ...

. The screenplay was written by

John Steinbeck John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. (; February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was an American writer and the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature winner "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social ...

, using Edgcomb Pinchon's 1941 book ''Zapata the Unconquerable'' as a guide. The cast includes

Jean Peters Elizabeth Jean Peters (October 15, 1926 – October 13, 2000) was an American film actress. She is known as a star of 20th Century Fox in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and as the second wife of Howard Hughes. Although possibly best remembered f ...

and, in an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-winning performance,

Anthony Quinn Manuel Antonio Rodolfo Quinn Oaxaca (April 21, 1915 – June 3, 2001), known professionally as Anthony Quinn, was a Mexican-American actor. He was known for his portrayal of earthy, passionate characters "marked by a brutal and elemental v ...

. The film is a fictionalized account of the life of

Mexican revolution The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...

ary

Emiliano Zapata Emiliano Zapata Salazar (; August 8, 1879 – April 10, 1919) was a Mexican revolutionary. He was a leading figure in the Mexican Revolution of 1910–1920, the main leader of the people's revolution in the Mexican state of Morelos, and the ins ...

from his

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasants ...

upbringing through his rise to power in the early 1900s and his death in 1919. To make the film as authentic as possible, Kazan and producer

Darryl F. Zanuck Darryl Francis Zanuck (September 5, 1902December 22, 1979) was an American film producer and studio executive; he earlier contributed stories for films starting in the silent era. He played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of ...

studied the numerous photographs that were taken during the revolutionary years, the period between 1909 and 1919 when Zapata led the fight to restore land taken from common people during the dictatorship of

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 ...

. Kazan was especially impressed with the Agustín Casasola collection of photographs and he attempted to duplicate their visual style in the film. Kazan also acknowledged the influence of

Roberto Rossellini Roberto Gastone Zeffiro Rossellini (8 May 1906 – 3 June 1977) was an Italian film director, producer, and screenwriter. He was one of the most prominent directors of the Italian neorealist cinema, contributing to the movement with films such ...

's ''

Paisan ''Paisan'' ( it, Paisà ) is a 1946 Italian neorealist war drama film directed by Roberto Rossellini. In six independent episodes, it tells of the Liberation of Italy by the Allied forces during the late stage of World War II. The film premier ...

'' (1946).

Plot

Emiliano Zapata is part of a delegation sent to complain about injustices to corrupt longtime president Porfirio Díaz, but Díaz dismisses their concerns, driving Zapata to open rebellion, along with his brother Eufemio. He unites with

Pancho Villa Francisco "Pancho" Villa (,"Villa"
''Collins English Dictionary''. ; ;

under the leadership of naive reformer

Francisco Madero Francisco Ignacio Madero González (; 30 October 1873 – 22 February 1913) was a Mexican businessman, revolutionary, writer and statesman, who became the 37th president of Mexico from 1911 until he was deposed in a coup d'etat in February 1 ...

. Díaz is finally toppled and Madero takes his place, but Zapata is dismayed to find that nothing is changing. Madero offers Zapata land of his own while failing to take action to distribute land to the '' campesinos'' who fought to end the dictatorship and break up the estates of the elites. Zapata rejects the offer and seeks no personal gain. Meanwhile, the ineffectual but well-meaning Madero puts his trust in treacherous general

Victoriano Huerta José Victoriano Huerta Márquez (; 22 December 1854 – 13 January 1916) was a general in the Mexican Federal Army and 39th President of Mexico, who came to power by coup against the democratically elected government of Francisco I. Madero wit ...

. Huerta first takes Madero captive and then has him murdered. As it becomes clear that each new regime is no less corrupt and self-serving than the one it replaced, Zapata remains guided by his desire to return to the peasants their recently robbed lands while forsaking his personal interests. His brother sets himself up as a petty dictator, taking what he wants without regard for the law, but Zapata remains a rebel leader of high integrity. Although he is able to defeat Huerta after Madero's assassination, as a result of his integrity, Zapata loses his brother and his position. Although in the end Zapata himself is lured into an ambush and killed, the film suggests that the resistance of the ''campesinos'' does not end. Rumors begin that Zapata never died, but is instead continuing to fight from the hills, feeding the ''campesinos'' a sense of hope. As several scenes suggest, over the years, the ''campesinos'' have learned to lead themselves rather than looking to others to lead them.

Cast

as Josefa Zapata, his wife *

Eufemio Zapata Eufemio Zapata Salazar (1873, Ciudad Ayala - June 18, 1917, Cuautla, Morelos) was a participant in the Mexican Revolution and the brother of Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata. He was known as a womanizer, a macho man, and a very heavy drinker. ...

Joseph Wiseman Joseph Wiseman (May 15, 1918 – October 19, 2009) was a Canadian-American theatre, film, and television actor who starred as the villain Julius No in the first James Bond (film series), James Bond film, ''Dr. No (film), Dr. No'' in 1962. Wiseman ...

as Fernando Aguirre *

Arnold Moss Arnold Moss (January 28, 1910 – December 15, 1989) was an American character actor. His son was songwriter Jeff Moss. Early years Born in Flatbush, Moss was a third-generation Brooklyn native. He attended Brooklyn's Boys High School. ...

as Don Nacio *

Alan Reed Alan Reed (born Herbert Theodore Bergman; August 20, 1907 – June 14, 1977) was an American actor, best known as the original voice of Fred Flintstone on ''The Flintstones'' and various spinoff series. He also appeared in many films, includin ...

Pancho Villa Francisco "Pancho" Villa (,"Villa"
''Collins English Dictionary''. ; ;

Margo *** People * Margo (actress) (1917–1985), Mexican-American actress and dancer * Margo (magician), American magic performer and actress * Margo (singer), Irish singer * Margo (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name ...

as Soldadera * Harold Gordon as Francisco Ignacio Madero * Lou Gilbert as Pablo *

Frank Silvera Frank Alvin Silvera (July 24, 1914 – June 11, 1970) was a Jamaican-born American character actor and theatrical director. Born in Kingston, Jamaica and raised in Boston, Silvera dropped out of law school in 1934 after winning his first stage ...

* Florenz Ames as Señor Espejo *

Richard Garrick Richard Garrick (December 27, 1878 – August 21, 1962) was an Irish-born American actor and director. Life and career Garrick was born Richard Thomas O'Brien in the townland of Portlaw, County Waterford, Ireland. His father, James E. O'Brien ...

as Old General *

Fay Roope Fay Roope (born Winfield Harding Roope; October 20, 1893 – September 13, 1961) was a Harvard graduate and a character actor who appeared in American theater in New York City from the 1920s through 1950, and in American film and television from ...

Mildred Dunnock Mildred Dorothy Dunnock (January 25, 1901 – July 5, 1991) was an American stage and screen actress. She was twice nominated for an Academy Award: first ''Death of a Salesman'' in 1951, then '' Baby Doll'' in 1956. Early life Born in Baltimor ...

as Señora Espejo *

Henry Silva Henry Silva (September 23, 1926 – September 14, 2022) was an American actor. A prolific character actor, Silva was a regular staple of international genre cinema, usually playing criminals or gangsters. His notable film appearances include ...

as Hernández, the peasant who challenges "President" Zapata (uncredited) *

Ross Bagdasarian Ross S. Bagdasarian (; January 27, 1919 – January 16, 1972), known professionally by his stage name David Seville, was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor, best known for creating the cartoon band Alvin and the Chipmu ...

as officer (uncredited)

Production

Viva Zapata movie trailer screenshot (12)

Filming and casting

Filming took place in locations including

Durango, Colorado Durango is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of La Plata County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 19,071 at the 2020 United States Census. Durango is the home of Fort Lewis Coll ...

;

Roma, Texas Roma is a city in Starr County, Texas, United States. There were 11,561 people at the 2020 census. The city is located along the Rio Grande, across from Ciudad Miguel Alemán in Tamaulipas, Mexico. The city is also popularly known as Roma-Los S ...

, San Ygnacio, Texas in Zapata County; and

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

. The screenplay was written by

based on Edgcomb Pinchon's 1941 book ''Zapata the Unconquerable''. Steinbeck's screenplay has been published as a book along with a narrative of Zapata's life that Steinbeck also wrote. The film tends to romanticize Zapata and in doing so may distort the true nature of the Mexican Revolution. Zapata fought to free the land for the peasants of

Morelos Morelos (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Morelos ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Morelos), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 36 municipalities and its capital city is Cuer ...

and the other southern Mexican states. The film inaccurately portrays Zapata as illiterate, but he was raised in a family with land and money, and he received an education.

Barbara Leaming Barbara Leaming is an American biographer, whose subjects have included Roman Polanski, Orson Welles, Rita Hayworth, Marilyn Monroe, John F. Kennedy, Winston Churchill, and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Career Leaming, born in Philadelphia, Pen ...

writes in her biography of

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...

that Monroe tried to obtain a part in the film but failed, presumably because of

's lack of faith in her ability, both as an actress and as a box-office draw.

Reception

''Viva Zapata!'' received generally positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

reports that of 18 reviews, 61% of critics have given the film a positive review, with a rating average of 6.2/10.

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though his ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote a highly favorable review and commented that the film "... throbs with a rare vitality, and a masterful picture of a nation in revolutionary torment has been got by Director Elia Kazan." ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', however, criticized the direction and script: "Elia Kazan's direction strives for a personal intimacy but neither he nor the John Steinbeck scripting achieves in enough measure." Senator

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...

listed ''Viva Zapata!'' as his favorite film of all time.

Awards and nominations

Honors

The film is recognized by

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...

in these lists: * 2005:

AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores Part of the AFI 100 Years... series, AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores is a list of the top 25 film scores in American cinema. The list was unveiled by the American Film Institute in 2005. John Williams has the most scores in the top 25, with three ...

– Nominated

References

External links

* * * * *
''Viva Zapata''
detailed description of the plot * {{Portal bar, Mexico, United States, Film 1952 films Films with screenplays by John Steinbeck 1950s biographical films 20th Century Fox films 1952 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) films American biographical films Biographical films about rebels American black-and-white films 1950s English-language films Films scored by Alex North Films about Pancho Villa Cultural depictions of Porfirio Díaz Films directed by Elia Kazan Films featuring a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award-winning performance Films shot in Colorado Films produced by Darryl F. Zanuck Films about Emiliano Zapata Hispanic and Latino American films Hispanic and Latino American drama films Hispanic and Latino American action films Films about coups d'état 1950s American films