The film Roma (2018) highlights the issues of matriarchy and the societal concerns of patriarchy, such as the absence of father figures in many households, regardless of social class. At the same time, the movie demonstrates the impact of political tensions on the citizens and family relationships. The rise of feminism is shown through the perspective of the relationships between two female characters – Cleo and Sofia. The paper will focus on the subjects of the film’s political controversy and historical arguments and their impact on the main characters. In addition, it will examine the issues of femininity, the second wave of feminism, motherhood, and employment in Mexico. Last but not least, the research paper will analyze the film from the perspective of its producer, Alfonso Cuaron, since the movie is based on his childhood memories and can be perceived as his personal story.
Brachet-Marquez, Viviane. 1992. “Explaining Socio-Political Change in Latin America: The Case of Mexico.” Latin American Research Review 27(3): 91-122.
The author of this scholarly article is a Professor of Sociology at El Colegio de Mexico. In this research paper, Brachet-Marquez (1992) highlights the changes that occurred in Mexico after it declared independence from Spanish rule. The author argues that analyzing socio-political changes in Mexico has become as important as examining stability was predominant in the past (Brachet-Marquez, 1992). The information about the tensions between the government and Mexican citizens complements Camin and Meyer’s (1993) research about the post-revolutionary regimes. The article is useful to my film review since it offers four different perspectives on political permanence and change: the clientelistic perspective, the pluralist perspective, the authoritarian-corporatist perspective, and the class perspective (Brachet-Marquez, 1992). Each of these standpoints offers new insight into the film’s subjects. For example, the article can help comprehend why employers and employees live close to each other, as shown in the movie. The authoritarian-corporatist perspective can be used to describe the methods the Mexican government utilized to deal with the opposing views.
Camin, Hector Aguilar, and Lorenzo Meyer. 1993. In the Shadow of the Mexican Revolution: Contemporary Mexican History, 1910-1989. New York: University of Texas Press.
Hector Aguilar Camin and Lorenzo Meyer are Mexican writers and journalists who decided to fill in the black spaces in the history of Mexico by writing this book. In the book, the authors reveal the truth about the Cardenas regime, the “Mexican economic miracle” and its collapse, and other political and historical aspects that occurred in Mexico in the twentieth century (Aguilar and Meyer, 1993). The film Roma can be analyzed through the historical perspective revealed in this book. In one scene, Cleo arrives at the hospital to give birth to a baby while the boyfriend of a woman who followed her is killed by soldiers. This scene can be explained by the community division that occurred due to the capitalist growth, as described by Camin and Meyer (1993). Moreover, the authors brilliantly describe how the post-revolutionary regimes affected the politics and economics of the country, as well as the roles of labor and “Campesinos” in the country’s well-being (Camin and Meyer, 1993). In my review, I will use this data to explain better the conflicting relationships between different social classes represented in the film.
Cerillo-Garnica, Omar. 2019. “Roma: A Portrait of Mexican Segregational Society.” Art Style, Art & Culture International Magazine 1(1): 25-34.
Omar Cerillo-Garnica (2019) is a Mexican researcher and professor in Social and Political Sciences. In his article, the author reviews the film Roma (2018), explaining the impact of post-colonialism on Mexican values. Cerillo-Garnica (2019) begins the review with a description of Mexican cinematography and its development from the 19th century to modern times. The author claims that the movie Roma is not about the city, but the presence of the city helps better comprehend the whole narrative (Cerillo-Garnica, 2019). For instance, according to the researcher, the city serves as “an antagonistic power, that confronts Cleo to her new reality” (Cerillo-Garnica, 2019). Although this film review does not relate to the previous articles, it can be used in my research to analyze the impact of cinematic elements on plot development. I will utilize this work in my review to examine the ideology of Mexican society of those times and apply it to the themes of femininity and political tensions.
Demircan, Birol. 2020. “Masculine Domination and Gender in Bourdieusian Sociology: The Case of Roma Movie.” International Perspectives on Feminism and Sexism in the Film Industry, 200-211.
The author of this article is a Professor of Gazi University with a long scientific experience. In this study, Demircan (2020) examines the movie Roma (2018), focusing on the issues of femininity and gender roles in the patriarchal society. The author analyzes these aspects based on Pierre Bourdieu’s statements on masculine domination (Demircan, 2020). Since the subjects of maternity and feminism were not properly described in the previous sources, this article will significantly augment my research. As in many other societies, Mexican society was dominated by males in the 1970s. Thus, the role of women was often underestimated and even ignored. However, in the film, the main focus is on female relationships and maternity roles. In the motion picture, women are the heads of their families, not men. In addition, the relations between Cleo and Sofia are crucial for the film review since they help better comprehend the second wave of feminism. I will use this article to reveal the themes of femininity and the life of women without male support in Mexican society.
Mazierska, Ewa, and Lars Lyngsgaard Fjord Kristensen. 2020. Third Cinema, World Cinema and Marxism. New York: Bloomsbury Academic.
The authors of this book are Professor of Contemporary Cinema Ewa Mazierska and a Post-Doctoral Research Assistant, Lars Kristensen. Both authors have expertise in filmmaking and film reviewing, and Kristensen is a specialist in postcommunist filmmaking. In the book Third Cinema, World Cinema and Marxism, Mazierska and Kristensen (2020) analyze different films, and the film Roma is among them. The authors review this film from the perspective of Marxism. For example, the researchers claim that the film shows that the masses did not rely on self-appointed spokespeople from Mexico or Hollywood but needed their own leaders (Mazierska and Kristensen, 2020). Women often served as such intellectual vanguards for their children since fathers were often absent or did not participate in child-raising processes. Thus, this book augments Demircan’s (2020) article about masculine domination and feminism in Roma.
Moreover, Mazierska and Kristensen (2020) argue that the filmmaker did not answer such important questions as how much Cleo earned because he was telling her story from the perspective of a child with limited understanding. At the same time, the movie is semi-autobiographical, which means that it should not be interpreted as a historical drama. This information is important for my research since it helps me better understand the aspects of feminism and the status of women in Mexican society of those times.