10 · 25 · 15

El Fantasma del Convento by Fernando de Fuentes at the 13th FICM

Jaime Garba (@jaimegarba), reportero.

Within the Mexican Gothic Film Program, the 13th FICM, in collaboration with the Cineteca Nacional, the UNAM film archive and Fundación Televisa, presented the film El fantasma del convento (1934) by Mexican director Fernando de Fuentes. The film was screened at the Cinépolis Morelia Centro and was presented by Guadalupe Ferrer, director of the UNAM film archive.

Fernando de Fuentes is considered one of the pioneers of Mexican cinema. He was the first director in Mexico to film in color (Así se quiere en Jalisco, 1942) and was the first to make a film with another country (Jalisco canta en Sevilla, 1948), co-produced by Spain. His talent led him to direct films like Allá en el Rancho Grande (1936) that were very successful in Mexico and abroad. His iconic films include El compadre Mendoza (1933) and ¡Vámonos con Pancho Villa! (1935).

The screening was presented by Guadalupe Ferrer, director of the UNAM film archive, who commented:

Guadalupe Ferrer on El fantasma del convento:
“In its genre and for its time, this film is perhaps one of the most important works of Mexican cinema. In it, Fernando de Fuentes tries to present a sober and deep character, where horror becomes only the detonator and the enhancer of the psychological drama of the characters.”

Guadalupe Ferrer on gothic cinema:
“Gothic cinema comes from literature of the 18th and 19th century and recovers that part of the treatment of the dark side of human beings. Beyond the fantastic in the film by De Fuentes, what we see is the use of the genre to enhance psychological problems, the paranoia of the characters.”

Guadalupe Ferrer on the importance of Mexican gothic cinema:
“Perhaps if we wonder whether there is gothic cinema or film noir in Mexico – of which we already organized a program which was very successful, not only in Mexico but also in the United States and France ­– we might say no, but they do exist. Most importantly, these films can be seen because they are preserved, safeguarded and restored. Without that, these films would not exist and people would not be familiar with them. Obviously, this is essential because we are who we are because we were that.”

El fantasma del convento was written by Fernando de Fuentes, Jorge Pezet and Juan Bustillo Oro, who was also a prominent director and whose film Dos monjes (1934) is part of the Mexican Gothic Film Program. The film stars Victorio Blanco, Beltrán de Heredia, Enrique del Campo, Agustín González, Francisco Lugo, Paco Martínez, José Ignacio Rocha, Marta Roel and Carlos Villatoro.