Cabeza De Vaca

It's evident from every frame of this film that the filmmakers invested a great deal of love, energy and artistry to their task. Director Echevarria gets the utmost out of his outstanding cast. The Spaniards and the Native Americans are entirely believable, and the film depicts one of the most authentic representaions of Native American cultures I've seen on screen. The only film that comes close is Last of the Mohicans. It's definitely a case of the good, the bad and the ugly. The clash of cultures couldn't be represented any better.

Juan Diego as de Vaca is a revelation. He should have been up for an Oscar for his performance. The dwarfish villager who first vividly menaces and later befriends de Vaca has to be one of the most memorable characters in recent cinema. The same can be said for the village Shaman, also an exceptional performance.

From the credits, it is evident that the Mexican Government had a hand in funding the filming of this movie. It is well that they should have, as this has to be something of a national treasure.

Definitely disregard any negative comments about Cabeza de Vaca. It's a great film about an amazing man, whose courage and fortitude may have been unmatched in the annals of European exploreration of the New World. This is decidedly a must-see.

BEK


Demanding, brilliant and not an easy one to watch.   August 30, 1999
29 out of 35 found this review helpful

A disturbing, yet deeply moving film. It struck me as very like watching a cinematic outpouring of images from the collective unconscious, with all the beauty and horror and mystery we see in dreams -- and nightmares. A journey of transformation and pain, and an indictment of European imperialism, as well as the cruelty of the missionary zeal of the Catholic Church. I felt I was watching an average human being undergo loss of ordinary self, thus opening him to a wider and deeper experience of life. It is worth watching, and perhaps employing as a means of searching one's own moral position in regard to life and one's reflection in relation to other, and thus unfamiliar human experience.


Fascinating and Entertaining   February 19, 2005
C. Conway (Texas)
19 out of 19 found this review helpful

Complaints about how this film departs from the original memoir are unfair for two reasons:

1) In order for any historical film to stand on its own, it needs to mess with the original and find its own truth and shape. Film is art, not history. The question is: does this film entertain and fascinate us? It does!

2) Cabeza de Vaca's memoir is full of gaps--he doesn't go into detail about alot of the things he experienced and how he survived. For example, in the span of one chapter (a few pages in his memoir), he tells us that several years have gone by. Thus, the film makers had some flexibility with regards to being creative. In fact, Cabeza de Vaca states in his preface to the king that he is intentionally leaving things out for the purpose of brevity. Also, there was another reason not to spill all the beans-- in light of the Inquisition, there might have been experiences he left out on purpose.

This is one of the finest films about the Conquest of the New World ever made. Don't miss it. If you enjoy it, read the original story.


Brilliant art movie (in a terrible DVD rendering)   January 20, 2005
Asger Harlung (Denmark)
18 out of 19 found this review helpful

Cabeza de Vaca is a Mexican movie about a conquistador who survives a shipwreck and ... well, no spoilers here...

Since "Cabeza de Vaca" is a multiple times awarded Mexican movie, any expectation of epic Hollywood-style action means that one didn't pay attention.
Looking at "Cabeza de Vaca"'s background, one can only expect expect an intellectual effort in a "foreign" style.
If you watch the movie on that premise, it clearly delivers:

"Cabeza de Vaca" may be compared to -
1) "The Mission" due to its narrative style, using pictures rather than words for large parts of the storytelling,
2) German director Werner Herzog's cinematic style, especially in "Fitzcarraldo", and
3) John Boorman's "Excalibur" for its' strange story with supernatural elements and glimpses of sudden violence.

All in all, "Cabeza de Vaca" is a highly recommendable "artistic movie".

The only possible point of criticism is the DVD rendering, which is nothing less than terrible. It's in 4:3 format with English texts that can not be turned off, and are placed almost in the middle of the picture - and the picture quality is not exactly a state of the art DVD rendering either. Shame on the publisher for making an edition of such a movie look like a DVD conversion of a cheaply made rental VHS.
I looked for this movie for several years... and I'll keep looking for a decent 16:9 version.

The five stars are for the movies' own qualities, but other customers should be warned that the rendition quality itself deserves a straight zero. A widescreen VHS would be better.



The Most Under-rated Movie Ever   May 2, 2003
Walter W. Lyford (Miami, FL United States)
17 out of 19 found this review helpful

I saw this movie in Miami, FL when it was newly released. It electrified me but I was disappointed that it did not create a huge sensation. It should encourage people to read the original writings of Cabeza de Vaca on his prodigious wanderings. He is one of the greatest explorers ever!

But this movie goes much deeper into his and our collective unconscious. It is not merely a factual description of his trip across the North American continent but a journey into our mental and spiritual make up.

Shipwrecked, captured and sold to the tribal Shaman, the mighty European Conquistador is reduced to the fetal position on the shores of the New World.

But it is his deep and sincere Christian belief that makes him a potent Shaman himself as he is trained by the master and the two powers merge.

There is plenty of indictment against the narrow confines of the Church and the brutality of the conquest. The Native Americans are depicted as mostly noble, perhaps primitive yet organized and in harmony with nature. There is a scene in the desert SouthWest where they appear like Buddhist monks as they inter the first to fall to the bullet on this continent.

I have seen the movie once or twice since 1992 and can't wait to get the DVD to further study the film and get any extras it may provide.