the mind of chapiz

It is interesting seen a movie that has a lot of intellectual montage.  One of the images that call my attention is where the young girl gets merry and on the way to the house from the church you see a lot of little girls that are wearing this outfit that looks like the one the Virgin Mary had because it shows the little girls then it turns to focus on the picture of the Virgin.  This film has a lot of representation from the bible.  On the top of the church you see a young man carrying a stick on his shoulder to signify Jesus carrying the cross and as he stops and gets on his knees, this woman comes over and wipes his face with a cloth just like Mary did with Jesus. 

1. In a way he uses a serape to compare it to the Mexican culture because on a sarape the colors stand on their own separated from the rest yet all of them are held together independently which makes it look beautiful.  In the Mexican culture there are still many ancient customs and tradition that are still strong influence in present day culture because perhaps they also have been held together by a strong invisible string that in a way weaves all the different customs together. 

2. The primitive essence in present day today is that they still believe or worship the same ancient gods as the past generation and some of those descendents are still present in certain areas of Mexico.  In the movie it points out how the Mexican people reflect or resemble the past civilizations depicted by the stone ruins that are still present.  It is point out that Mexicans still carry the same facial features as those of the pass.  Also they still celebrate or keep honoring the Virgen de Guadalupe as a memory of the Spain conquest of Mexico.  In the movie they show how they have fiestas and they do all fights in honor of the Virgin.  The bull fights is another example of past civilization influence since it was something introduced also by the Spaniards.  It also shows the suppression of the lower class by powerful land owners this could also resemble the suppression the Indians in Mexico went through in the hands of the Spaniards. 

3. In the film it gives you the idea that religion plays a big role in the Mexican culture.  It shows men walking with sticks of cactus carried in their shoulders as to represent Jesus as the walk up to the church.  It also shows a couple of toreros sacrificing their life in honor of the Virgin.  In respect to the culture it depicts men as being the one in control for example they rest while the women are the one working to make the money.  Also how the ones with the money suppress and take advantage of the campesinos or lower class by making them work hard. 

4. He probably wanted to show that Mexicans owner their ancestors by celebrating the ones that are dead and that to show that perhaps they don’t fear death but instead they celebrate it.