Historical Narrative in Juarez (Dieterle, 1939)

(Dieterle, 1939)

Abstract

This article analyzes the film Juarez (1938) directed by William Dieterle, screened in American and Mexican cinemas in 1939. The film, produced by Warner, starred the famous actors Paul Muni and Bette Davis, and it had the support of the Mexican president, Lazaro Cardenas, who provided the production with  Benito Juarez’s documents as well as with interviews of witnesses of the time. He also offered a tour of historical places and he offered the Palace of Fine  Arts for the Latin American premier. This article intends to discuss the concept of cinema and history: historical cinema is an interpretation of past history  and it changes, at the same time, into a ocument for recent history. In this regard two objectives are posed, to show how the historical film of the French  intervention was constructed (1862–1867), and how it transmitted messages against Nazism, the New Deal and the fight for democracy.