María Candelaria

“The Mexican cinema was introduced to Europe in 1946 at Cannes with María Candelaria, which has since come to be considered “the classic and most memorable of all Mexican films” (B. Rayes Nevares, The Mexican Cinema). Director Emilio Fernandez (“El Indio”) contributed much to the creative period Mexico saw in the forties with films like Flor Sylvestre, Perla and Enamorada—“a series of major national portraits,” writes historian Georges Sadoul, “like the murals of Diego Rivera and Siqueiros, reflecting both the Spanish and Indian traditions and a certain popular taste for melodrama.” Dolores del Río began a renewed career with María Candelaria, the poignant story of a young girl who is mercilessly persecuted by her townspeople, first for the misconduct of her mother, and then for that which the villagers attribute to her. Pedro Armendáriz stars as the peasant boy who tries to save her. The film is set against the backdrop of Xochimilco, near Mexico City, with its floating gardens and indiginous music.” —Pacific Film Archives