{"id":80452,"date":"2022-01-20T00:48:48","date_gmt":"2022-01-20T07:48:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=80452"},"modified":"2022-01-20T09:42:42","modified_gmt":"2022-01-20T16:42:42","slug":"viva-villa-1934","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=80452","title":{"rendered":"Viva Villa! (1934)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;I once thought Pancho Villa was a hero &#8212; a great man!&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Poster-200x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-80453\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Poster-200x300.png 200w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Poster-681x1024.png 681w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Poster-85x128.png 85w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Poster-180x270.png 180w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Poster.png 739w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nSeeking revenge for his murdered father, Pancho Villa (Wallace Beery) becomes a fierce bandit and then a general in the Mexican Revolution, supporting new President Francisco Madero (Henry B. Walthall) &#8212; but will his goal of returning land to the peasants ever become a reality?\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Biopic<\/li>\n<li>Fay Wray Films<\/li>\n<li>Historical Drama<\/li>\n<li>Journalists<\/li>\n<li>Revolutionaries<\/li>\n<li>Wallace Beery Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nThis highly fanciful Pre-Code rendering of the legend of <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pancho_Villa\">Pancho Villa<\/a> (scripted by Ben Hecht) was nominated for an Academy Award as one of the Best Pictures of the Year, and was hugely popular at the box office. Unfortunately, it comes across today as a mostly offensive effort, primarily given the casting of buffoonish Beery in the lead role, not to mention no Latinos in the cast at all (a norm for the time, but still noticeable). <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Beery2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Beery2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"608\" height=\"448\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-80461\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Beery2.png 608w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Beery2-300x221.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Beery2-128x94.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Beery2-366x270.png 366w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 608px) 100vw, 608px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The film seems designed to portray Villa in a legendary if authentically problematic light, given the role played by Stuart Erwin as an American reporter eager for scoops: <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Erwin.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Erwin.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"608\" height=\"448\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-80457\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Erwin.png 608w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Erwin-300x221.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Erwin-128x94.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Erwin-366x270.png 366w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 608px) 100vw, 608px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; yet justice simply isn&#8217;t done to the complexity of this folk hero&#8217;s legacy. Ultimately, the movie&#8217;s extremely challenging production history &#8212; including Howard Hawks bowing out as its initial director &#8212; is more interesting than the finished product; according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/1626\/viva-villa#articles-reviews?articleId=87929\">TCM&#8217;s article<\/a>: <\/p>\n<blockquote><p>During the location shoot [in Mexico], real soldiers and peasants were used as extras, and some of them were quite a bit wilder than MGM expected. &#8230; Shootings often took place near the set, and one man inexplicably turned a pistol on himself after speeding by and crashing his car through a fence. MGM&#8217;s crew was housed in old railroad cars, and they were regularly served nearly inedible food. &#8230; [The] film became the subject of angry debate among Mexican citizens and government leaders who were leery of romanticizing Villa. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Meanwhile, Lee Tracy &#8212; originally cast in the role played by Erwin &#8212; made an absolute mess of things, and was fired. As described in TCM&#8217;s article: <\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Lee Tracy was known as one of the more enthusiastic drinkers in the film industry; his name was often mentioned in the same breath as such famous imbibers as John Barrymore and W.C. Fields. Tracy&#8217;s fast-talking persona was perfect for the character Johnny Sykes, and he filmed several key scenes with Hawks behind the camera. One Sunday, during a national holiday, the cast and crew were celebrating in the streets with the locals&#8230;except for Tracy, who was standing buck-naked on a balcony, shouting obscenities at the crowd. Eventually, he urinated on a group of Mexican military cadets and had to be rushed out of the country lest he be strung up for his anti-social behavior.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Tracy&#8217;s firing from the film led to a spat and break up between Hawks and David O. Selznick, with the eventual cost of this movie ballooning to over a million dollars. Watch for Fay Wray as one of many women Zapata is interested in and &#8220;wants to marry&#8221; (i.e., have sex with), though she&#8217;s having none of that: <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Wray2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Wray2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"608\" height=\"448\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-80458\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Wray2.png 608w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Wray2-300x221.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Wray2-128x94.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Wray2-366x270.png 366w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 608px) 100vw, 608px\" \/><\/a> <\/p>\n<p><strong>Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Atmospheric cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Cinematography.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"608\" height=\"448\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-80454\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Cinematography.png 608w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Cinematography-300x221.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Cinematography-128x94.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Viva-Villa-Cinematography-366x270.png 366w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 608px) 100vw, 608px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo; you can skip this one unless you&#8217;re a Wallace Beery fan. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0025948\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/1626\/viva-villa#articles-reviews?articleId=87929\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1934\/04\/11\/archives\/wallace-beery-as-pancho-villa-in-a-fictionized-film-biography-of.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;I once thought Pancho Villa was a hero &#8212; a great man!&#8221; Synopsis: Seeking revenge for his murdered father, Pancho Villa (Wallace Beery) becomes a fierce bandit and then a general in the Mexican Revolution, supporting new President Francisco Madero (Henry B. Walthall) &#8212; but will his goal of returning land to the peasants ever become a reality? Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Biopic Fay Wray Films Historical Drama Journalists Revolutionaries Wallace Beery Films Review: This highly fanciful Pre-Code rendering&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=80452\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-80452","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80452","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=80452"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80452\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80476,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80452\/revisions\/80476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=80452"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=80452"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=80452"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}