The Only Defense is Excess: Translating and Surpassing Hollywood’s Conventions to Establish a Relevant Mexican Cinema

Abstract

Mexico is one of the countries which has adapted American cinematographic genreswith success and productivity. This country has seen in Hollywood an effectivestructure for approaching the audience. With the purpose of approaching nationaland international audiences, Meximo has not only adopted some of Hollywoodcinematographic genres, but it has also combined them with Mexican genres such as“Cabaretera” in order to reflect its social context and national identity. The Melodramaand the Film Noir were two of the Hollywood genres which exercised a stronger influenceon the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema. Influence of these genres is specifically evidentin style and narrative of the film Aventurera (1949). This film shows the links betweenHollywood and Mexican cinema, displaying how some Hollywood conventions weretranslated and reformed in order to create its own Mexican Cinema. Most countriesintending to create their own cinema have to face Hollywood influence. This industryhas always been seen as a leading industry in technology, innovation, and economiccapacity, and as the Nemesis of local cinema. This case study on Aventurera showsthat Mexican cinema reached progress until exceeding conventions of cinematographicgenres taken from Hollywood, creating stories which went beyond the local interest