La Cucaracha

"La Cucaracha" is a short that features lots of singing and dancing....and about a billion choruses of the song! Yes, THAT song...the one about cockroaches. Señor Martinez comes to the cantina looking for talent for his shows. Conchita is afraid that Martinez will take away Pancho, so she spends most of the film annoying Martinez--to drive him off!

"La Cucaracha" is a film that would have been completely forgotten over the years except for one thing--it's the first color film made using true color. Let me explain. In the early part of the 20th century, a few films actually were hand-painted--and the results were color...or sorts. Later, two-color processed (such as Two Color Technicolor and Cinecolor) were developed and the results were fair. The problem was that the films looked very orange and very green and a true spectrum of colors was absent. So, for example, true blues were not possible with the films. Now when you see "La Cucaracha", you might not be very impressed with the color. It looks garish--and a lot like it's been colorized but with much more vibrant colors (particularly blues and yellows). I am not sure if this ugly look is because of the effects of time and degradation on the film stock, the quality of the new Three Color Technicolor or because the 'experts' just didn't know what they were doing since it was such a new thing. But, regardless, the film is mega-important from a historical perspective. And, by the way, some might think "Becky Sharp" was the first full-color film. It's actually the first full-color FULL-LENGTH film--"La Cucaracha" was a short. Overall, the film is mildly entertaining and moderately funny--but nothing more. It's only fair entertainment but for film buffs it's a must-see.