Viva Villa! (1934)
…………………………………………………
Viva Villa! Movie Review
Viva Villa! is a 1934 biographical film directed by Jack Conway and starring Wallace Beery. It’s a solid and effective, but dated movie in so many ways.
………………………………………………….
“Now is the time for all good men
to come to the aid of Jonny Sykes“
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
The movie is about Pancho Villa, a famous Mexican revolutionary. It made so much money at the box office back in 1934 and was quite popular at the Oscars even. However, for today’s politically correct climate and audiences, it’s simply not a good match and there are many reasons for why is that.
They shot the movie in Mexico which was great, but that’s pretty much the only legitimately authentic Mexican part of this film. All of the actors are American and the characterizations are pretty much stereotypical in every regard. I still find the movie solid and forgive them somewhat for that as it’s an old movie, but still nowadays this film would have been so much more respectably made.
I still ended up really liking Wallace Beery in the role of Pancho. He was one of the best actors working in Hollywood back in the early thirties and was thus a very strong fit for this type of role. He sold both the emotional and the dramatic moments and is very memorable throughout. So memorable in fact that he puts the rest of the cast and characters in a major shadow unfortunately. I do believe that he should have been nominated for Best Actor this year.
Viva Villa! is your typical biopic meaning that it is bloated in runtime and very badly paced throughout. It’s one of those 30s historical flicks which span many years and are thus epic, but also messy and not everything is as memorable. But still, the movie is quite engaging more than it’s dull and I particularly appreciated its emotional moments, character interactions and darkness.
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
It’s a very dark, brutal movie as one of the last Pre-Code Hollywood flicks and everything here screams Pre-Code which is awesome. I loved the cinematography at display and the location shooting really worked in its favor. It’s an epic movie that is still very watchable these days if you discount the political incorrectness and of course as a history lesson, it is never really reliable. It deserved its nod for sound, but not the other nominations.
Viva Villa! is a product of its time as it is, apart from being shot in Mexico, not authentically Mexican in any other way and it’s also pretty messy in pacing and scope. But it still ended up being solid, in particular for some great moving moments, some epic scenes, terrific cinematography and a particularly memorable main performance from Wallace Beery.
