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El baile de los 41 (Spanish) [Dance Of The 41]

A historical and a period piece based on a true story. You already have my attention. After finishing watching the film, I still cannot believe that this is based on true events from back in 1901, almost 120 years back. A scandal shook entire country of Mexico when an illegal raid was conducted at an annual ball where 41 gay men were arrested and publicly shamed for the act.

Congressman Ignacio is doing well and also has high ambitions from his political career. He is marrying Amada, the daughter of Mexico’s President so that his new status as son-in-law of the president will help push him into new territory. The only problem is Ignacio is gay and struggles to consummate his marriage. Soon he meets Evaristo, a man with whom he is slowly falling in love with. Ignacio brings Evaristo to a secret club of high profile group of queer men that meets regularly to party, have sex, and entertain one another. Ignacio thinks he can keep the two lives separate but increasing suspicion and snooping from wife Amada, brings t he truth out. Rumors start and she doesn't hesitate to take matters in her hands and involves her father and brother. Amada wants right for her but Ignacio can't give that.Torn between angry wife, jeopardized career, and dedicated lover, Ignacio struggles to make sense of his world and future. A police raid on a a special ball at which many of the men are dressed in drag, gets all members arrested except Ignacio. The 41 men are publicly shamed and many die (as we are told later). Thanks to his father-in-law Ignacio has escaped punishment but the aftershocks of this event and the friends he lost may very well change his life forever.

The first thing you notice is the super high production values of this film. The sets, costumes, mannerisms, everything is absolutely fantastic. A lot of struggles fo LGBT community wanting to live the way to but unable to are shown very clearly in the film. In fact, most poignant scenes happen when the men secretly meet in the club and talk. This is when you realize the struggles are real. These are people who feel they have to hide away from the world to find their true happiness, and are forced to create families with people they don’t really love and put on faces for everyone else to see. Love story between Ignacio and Evaristo is beautiful and very very real. You feel for them and their pure love. Sadly, the film portrays the wife Amada as the villain but as an audience I feel that it's not really her fault. She was victim of circumstances and nothing was really her fault. She was a string women who was just not going to take shit from her husband. So in that sense, the film creates a string female character but unfortunately portrays her in a negative light. There is a lot of nudity, sex, skin in the film but never unnecessary. The film never goes over dramatic and keeps its theme and treatment very very real. Fantastic actors, great direction and just the right amount of time. The shocking ending is really sad. The torture and loss of Evaristo somehow ended up feeling like a personal loss. Amanda, without even flinching, breaks the news of Evaristo’s death to Ignacio while he sits stoned and tears up.

Displaying the humanity and tragedy of these men, their desire to live as who they were, and the consequences of that desire; this film is an absolute must watch. The beauty and aesthetic in Ignacio and Evaristo’s love story is not often seen so up close compounded with a tragedy that awaits them. (7.5/10)

Comments

luigi43 said…
A lovely movie , very well done . To be honest and objective ,I like to add a personal , personal consideration in the view of actual LGBT life , more free and " accepted" ; the wife is not a real villain : imagine how a woman ( today and hundred years ago ) must feel to be used twice to be a cover and a way to climb society !
Golu said…
Yes exactly. It wasn't a right thing to do to her. It wasn't her fault. The wife should not have been the villain. But then in stories like this, it is hard too ay what's right or wrong.
Chas W said…
I thought the movie was rather boring. The characterisations were very one-dimensional. We knew nothing about Ignacio other than he had married the President's daughter. No sense of who he was or where or why he wanted the power of being an MP. Evaristo is also a nonentity, and the relationship became about how to stop their moustaches from getting in the way. Also thought the treatment of the wife was appalling - no real sense of her pain, she became a vindictive harridan. The director seemed to direct the camera to spend hours swirling around in the gay club where very little action happened. It was time wasting and boring. A pity as the sets and costumes were magnificent and they obviously had a lot of money to spend.
Chas W said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Golu said…
Oh really? That interesting!! I didn't feel that at all. I thought their love was beautiful portrayed in very undertones and subtle manner. Yes, the treatment was wife was odd and her reaction even weirder which makes you unable to take sides. The long drawn sequences of the gay club was more to show the how's. who's of that time period.
A part of me can see why you would find the film boring. One problem is that it never rises beyond the basics of what it was meant to say. Regardless, I personally enjoyed it.

And of course, I would love to hear more of your comments. The is what helps me see thing sin a different perspective and get an alternate side of looking at movies.

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