Genres and topics of Mexican Cinema
By Irving Colorado
The first productions of Mexican cinema made in 1896 could be considered as
reports that established the first informative formats. On the other hand, the cinema
was used as a means of propaganda and documentary on the Porfiriato by Porfirio
Díaz.
Years later, the first mexican narrative film was made in 1998 by Salvador Toscano,
this because it had a plot about a native Mexican. Thus began the productions with
themes of national wars and melodramas. After the revolution, thanks to World War
II and the limited film production in Latin America, Mexican cinema entered its golden
age, where the genres of ranch cinema and comedy predominated.
However, due to the drop in quality and the fatigue of always seeing the same thing,
the Golden Age ended and gave rise to the sub-genres of exploitation, where themes
of a culture with cheap and fast productions were exploited. But as some of these
themes were so successful, they became a genre of their own, such as Luchador
movies and ficheras movies.
Later, most of the Mexican films would be produced by Televisa, with films of the
genre of comedy and themes of whitexicans. But It would also highlight a new
generation of filmmakers such as Alejandro Iñarritu or Luis Estrada, where dramatic
genre and themes such as social reality are very present, this is the cinema that its
call like the New Mexican Cinema.
