According to the synopsis this movie takes place after the Spanish conquered the Aztec. Has there ever been a movie about the actual story of Cortez and Montezuma and the story of the battles that took place during the Spanish conquest of the Aztec?
And what side does The Other Cousin take? Do they paint the Spanish or the Aztec in good light? Are they bias toward one side (Spanish or Aztec) or what?
the only movie about he actual conquest i know of is called captain from castille (1947) in color with tyrone power. it was a good start but unfortunately it ended right when the conquest was getting started.
this film screams to be remade today by mel gibson or ridley scott. don't laugh, but here is who i would cast:
cortez- was mid or early thirties at time of conquest and a little guy. my pick? leonardo de caprio.
malinche- salma hayek made for that role. she could work up some chemistry with de caprio and be a center for the film.
Pedro de Alvarado- a sadistic guy with long blonde hair, he was named Tonatiuh, or Sun God by the Aztecs. who else but brad pitt in a supporting role (think kalifornia)?
bernal diz del castillo- cuban actor cesar evora
cuahutemoc- maybe raoul trujillo from apocalypto as a good guy this time.
the mexican woman who wrote Como Agua Para Chocolate has a new novel called Malinche. it would be the perfect script to tell this tale.
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I actually like that idea of Salma playing la Malinche.
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salma's skin is close enough, for god's sake she's not penelope cruz or kate winslett. it's her age that is creeping up. plus she as seen in mexico as sort of a traitor, so she would be perfect for the role.
i always thought of cortez as an older guy but in fact he was only in his 30s during the conquest, and he was also of slight stature and build... Leonardo diCaprio looks the part. And Brad Pitt as the evil Tonatiuh (Pedro de Alvarado named after the sun god) is frankly a perfect casting. Cesar Evora is a remarkable Cuban/Mexican actor.
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regarding moctezuma, that's a good question. i don't know i'm open to suggestions. it should be someone somewhat likable, so we can see why the mexica put up with him so long, yet still flawed, so we can see why he royally screwed up. it is a complex role, the same as that of cortez.
cortez was actually much less a brute than pizarro, he respected the local culture and was not so fond of his own in many ways... yet he also has to be capable of religious intollerance and extreme violence. i think you could engender sympathy for him by shocking the audience with blood covered priests or chaotic situations that called for swift action, as well as showing him sharing a fascination for the land of the mexica. but his weaknesses were certainly greed and ambition.
the role of cuauhtemoc requires a stronger personality than either of those guys, someone like wes studi or the bad guy band leader from apocalypto.
how can you criticize brad pitt as too hollywood then say cesar evora is not appropriate? despite being a soap opera actor, cesar evora is probably one of the best actors alive today. the guy is incredible, he engenders compassion and interest like harrison ford in his prime, but he is way more versatile. he's getting older now, ergo a role like the old priest who would write the story for future generations to know.
i don't know if you should do it mel gibson style, in castillian and aztec (probably better), or play up for maximum impact by doing it in english and perhaps nahuatl as a more hollywood production. it really needs to be made, however!@@
and regarding salma hayek, her father is libyan and her mother mexican jarocha (probably at least as much local indian as spanish), so she is dark enough and has some of the actual costena blood in her that malinche had. salma hayek is whiter than jennifer lopez, you don't need a cross-eyed jungle girl for the part!
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well that seems reasonable the english & nahautl. but now you have to find me a new malinche!
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What, No Edward James Olmos? Im prety sure that if a hollywood movie on the Aztec Conquest were ever made he'd would be in it.
he doesn't look sufficiently native, imho.
shareI find it jarring when the actors do not look sufficiently like the ethnic group they are playing. It is essential to me that the indigenous people of Mexico be played by actors who are of native descent and who look the part. No beetle eyebrows and hair bodies! So many films are spoiled for me when the actors playing natives are obviously not. End of the Spear is a good example. The main character was an Amazon native, but the actor was a New Yorker from Puerto Rico, and clearly mixed race.
shareTonantzin Carmelo would be perfect. She is so beautiful and such a great actress, I hadn't seen her before her performance as Thunder Heart Woman in "Into The West." Then I saw her Aztec name in the credits and her imdb bio says she is an Aztec dancer and acted in the play Malinche.
It's not necessary to have an indigenous-heritage woman play Malinche(who wasn't Aztec) but it is certainly ideal, and if she is a good actress then it's a match made in heaven.
Tonantzin's bio doesn't give her age but as long as the characters' ages appear consistent relative to each other then the individual discrepancies wouldn't even be noticed. For example it doesn't matter if the actress who plays Malinche is older than the age she is playing as long as she is younger then the actor who plays Cortes.
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"plus she is seen in mexico as sort of a traitor, so she would be perfect for the role."
Why is Salma Hayek seen as a traitor in Mexico??
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i don't know she just is. she did kind of go hollywood an turn her back on her native land. she never goes there nor shows up on tv or anything else, nevermind that most of her USA films have been pure tripe.
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def raoul trujillo as cuahutemoc! He was a warrior, and it is said that he hated the spanish the way hannibal hated the romans... with him lookin jacked like he did in apocalypto, he would def look the part of the warrior tryin to save his society..
*beep* this movie would be an epic tragedy...but so good!! it def needs to be made, like lord of the rings, kinda epicness, without the mysticism and dwarves...
they could get a little bit of a thin red line vibe goin on, depicting how beautiful tenochtitlan was, then show it get destroyed in the conquest...
could also depict the piggishness of the spanish, with their culutral genocide.. *beep* if i were a mestizo Mexican, I would drop catholiscism in a heartbeat... worshiping the god of your conquerors, still....... after...500 years??
I totally agree with you about A Captain From Castile being cut short at the point where they arrived at Tenochtitlan. A real 'are they out of their minds?' moment as it was halfway through the book and what followed was even more exciting than leaving Spain, sailing to the new world and the march across Mexico. I wondered if they had run out of money.
It definitely deserves to be remade, either as a TV miniseries or as a two part film, as was the Godfather, but not by Mel Gibson please and no big name American stars either. Cast Mexicans as the Aztecs and Spanish actors for the conquistadors. Javier Bardem for one.
The Australian director of Lonesome Dove could handle it.
If I had it within my power this is what I would like to see ..
Screenplay based on Robert Somerlott's book "Death of the Fifth Sun" .. This is an excellent account of the time told from Malinche's persepctive .. Being from her perspective it reads like a fantasy novel, since so much about the spaniards was completely foreign and misunderstood from their appearance (light skin blue and green eyes ) to their boats, mounts and metal armor and such. Even though it is a work of fiction and a great story , Robert Somerlott is an authority of some note on the subject so it is very factually accurate as well.
The book is written as a narrarative .. with an old Malinche recalling the story .. so the actual story could be in Castillian and the local languages with subtitles to add a more authentic feel .. and the narrative could be in English/French/German or whatever language you are marketing the film in .. giving it a little more "hollywood appeal" by not being entirely in subtitles.
First choice for director would be Ridley Scott .. however if one of the hot new mexican directors like Alejandro Inarritu or Alphonso Cuaron had a genuine desire to make the movie .. a labor of love type thing .. that would probably be even better.
for casting .. If we do the Castillian / Local Languages thing that limits casting to people who only speak the languages in question .. thats not much fun so for the sake of discussion we'll assume these people can learn the language in question or just do it in english.
Ewan McGregor as Cortez .. I know he's irish but he fits the description and I guarantee he could pull off the role .. He's a very good actor IMO.
Ana Claudia Talancon as Malinche .. she was in Matando Cabos (mexico) and One Missed Call (usa)..
Danny Trejo as Moctezuma .. He's getting old I know . at the very least I would want him as a high priest or great warrior at Moctezuma's side ..
god you pegged this! i was thinking leo de c as cortes but i think ewan macG might be an even better suggestion. i love Anna C T even if she looks a little too mestiza
shareI've been dreaming of making, or at least writing, a film that covers the story of the Conquest of Mexico for ages. I've been fascinated by the story for years and have what I think is a pretty good screenplay in my head for it. It just sucks knowing it'll probably never come to be, or someone else will do it first!
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