"Movie Talk" column from the New York Post with a review of the Mexican film "Seda, Sangre, y Sol" ("Silk, Blood, and Sun"), 1943. The review was favorable, and analyzed the recent rise of Mexican cinema. The film's distributor highlighted a passage about a bullfighting scene to note that the reviewer did not think it was dangerous. "Seda, Sangre, y Sol," directed by Fernando Rivero, was a romantic comedy that was also a bullfighting movie, combining two of the most profitable genres in Mexican film at the time. All three actors in the main love triangle (Pepe Ortiz, Jorge Negrete, and Gloria Marín) played bullfighters. There are also reviews for the film from the New York Journal American, the Daily Mirror, and the New York Herald Tribune. The New York Journal American review, by G.E. Blackford, was favorable. The Daily Mirror review, by Edith Werner, called the story "formula," but the action "thrilling." The New York Herald Tribune review, by Joseph Pihodna, decried the plot but praised the cinematography. The film's distributor again highlighted a passage in each review about a bullfighting scene to note that the reviewers did not think it was dangerous. There is also a letter to the Motion Picture Division from the World Theatre, the American distributor for the film. The letter said that several reviews of the film were enclosed, highlighting that none had issues with a bullfight scene that the division thought was worrisome. There is also a carbon copy of a letter from the director of the Motion Picture Division, responding to complaints about a bullfighting scene in the film.  The director noted that no complaints had been received about an American film, "Blood and Sand," with similar scenes, and that therefore he could not justify requiring the elimination of the scene. Last is a sample of dialogue for the film that was translated into English.

Identifier
NYSA_A1418-77_43040

Date Original
1943

Contributor
New York Post

Language
English

Source
New York State Archives, New York (State). Motion Picture Division. License application case files, 1921-1965. Box 1001, File 43040.

Rights
This image is provided for education and research purposes. Rights may be reserved. Responsibility for securing permissions to distribute, publish, reproduce or other use rest with the user. For additional information see our Copyright and Use Statement

Special Project
Ventana al Pasado/Window on the Past