Macario is my favorite Mexican movie. In 1960, it was the first Mexican movie to be nominated by the Academy for Best Film (Foreign Language). I was originally introduced to the movie by my good friend from Cuernavaca, Marco Dorado, when I was just beginning to learn Spanish. Many of scenes from the movie were filmed on location near Cuernavaca, including the Lagoons of Zempoala (Lagunas de Zempoala), the Caves of Cacahuamilpa (Grutas de Cacahuamilpa), and Taxco.
The Plot:
Macario is honest and hardworking, but still a very poor woodcutter who lives on the outskirts of town (Taxco) with his loving wife and their many children. The movie begins by painting a picture of a society in which the people traditionally pay more homage to the dead, than the living.
Pina Pellicer and Ignacio López Tarso (Macario)Throughout the movie, Macario is unhappy because he never seems to make enough money to support his family. When the daily food is set at the table, all of his kids eat up all the food before he has a chance to put a significant portion on his own plate. Always hungry, Macario’s dream is to eat an entire turkey by himself. Knowing this, his wife steals a turkey from a wealthy family in the town who did not pay her for her laundering services. The next morning, before their kids awake, she gives the whole turkey, roasted and ready to eat, to Macario as he is leaving to work in the forest.
In complete disbelief, Macario runs to the forest and finds just the right place to enjoy the meal of his dreams. However, just before Macario can take a bite of the turkey, the Devil appears asking for a piece of the turkey in exchange for riches. Macario vehemently refuses and finds another place to enjoy his meal near a pond (Lagunas de Zempoala). However, before Macario can take the bite, God appears to Macario and asks Macario to give part of the turkey to charity. Macario asks God why he needs half of his turkey, if he is indeed the creator of all of things. Macario, hungry and exhausted, finds another quite place to eat his meal when he is visited by Death himself. Death offers Macario magical life-giving water than is able to cure any sickness in exchange for his turkey. Macario reluctantly accepts Death’s offer. When Macario returns home he finds that one of his sons is deathly sick.
After healing his son with magical water, Macario becomes somewhat of a local shaman healer in the town and quickly has everything he could ever want. However, the local Catholic Church leaders find out and arrest him for practicing his "magic." Macario soon finds out that the real reason behind his arrest is that they want him to heal the magistrate’s son. Death appears once again, telling Macario that he cannot heal this particular child. Macario is forced to flee and hind in forest where again he has encounters with the Devil, God and Death. In the final scenes, Death shows all of people’s lives represented by candles in a cave (Grutas de Cacahuamilpa). The movie comes to an abrupt ending, leaving the viewer to determine the fate of Macario. The last scene is of the turkey - half eaten, sitting on a tree stump in the middle of the forest.
The movie, a cinematographic poem, brings up many issues and struggles having to do with Mexican culture. One of the most obvious lessons is that injustice becomes a major obstacle in allowing people to care for one another. It’s also interesting to note that the name Macario comes from the Greek word Μακαριος, which means “blessed, happy.” Ironically, Macario never seems to be truly happy (content) in the movie.
After healing his son with magical water, Macario becomes somewhat of a local shaman healer in the town and quickly has everything he could ever want. However, the local Catholic Church leaders find out and arrest him for practicing his "magic." Macario soon finds out that the real reason behind his arrest is that they want him to heal the magistrate’s son. Death appears once again, telling Macario that he cannot heal this particular child. Macario is forced to flee and hind in forest where again he has encounters with the Devil, God and Death. In the final scenes, Death shows all of people’s lives represented by candles in a cave (Grutas de Cacahuamilpa). The movie comes to an abrupt ending, leaving the viewer to determine the fate of Macario. The last scene is of the turkey - half eaten, sitting on a tree stump in the middle of the forest.
The movie, a cinematographic poem, brings up many issues and struggles having to do with Mexican culture. One of the most obvious lessons is that injustice becomes a major obstacle in allowing people to care for one another. It’s also interesting to note that the name Macario comes from the Greek word Μακαριος, which means “blessed, happy.” Ironically, Macario never seems to be truly happy (content) in the movie.
