Viva Villa!

Never learn your history through the movies. That has always been my mantra when it comes to historical films, especially those surrounding an important figure in history. In this case, that figure is Pancho Villa, and while the basics of the story in Viva Villa! are factual, most of what is depicted on screen is fictional. This is not the film to go to if you want to study the Mexican Revolution and Pancho Villa’s role in it. If you are coming to this film with historical curiosity, you would be better served with a history book than anything here.

That being said, there is nothing wrong with enjoying a film like this when taken in the correct context. Pancho Villa may seem like a figure from the Old West, but in actuality, he had only been dead for only about ten years when this film was released, making the story of his life recent news to moviegoers of the time. Indeed, while the majority of the film feels like it could have taken place in the 1800s, there is the occasional detail that gives away the more contemporary setting, such as the occasional use of early automobiles. This is a film set during the transitionary period in time where horses were still the primary mode of transport, but vehicles were beginning to become more common. 

The production of Viva Villa! is based on the novel Viva Villa! A Recovery of the Real Pancho Villa, Peon, Bandit, Soldier, Patriot by Edgecumb Pinchon and researched by O. B. Stade. Wallace Beery, whose career was on the upswing again thanks to several award-winning films in the early 1930s, was cast as Pancho. This would be the second time he played the man following a silent movie serial, Patria, in 1917. Beery was not of Hispanic descent, but during this era of motion pictures, it was commonplace to cast white actors in ethnic roles, sometimes utilizing makeup to enhance their skin color and features to better suit the part. This was an unfortunate reality of early Hollywood productions that has never really died out, although it is far more rare nowadays. Still, it wasn’t that many years ago when there were Asian actors playing Native Americans in Shanghai Noon or prosthetic makeup applied to give Bradley Cooper a “Jewish” nose in Maestro. The practice is becoming increasingly rare but has not gone away entirely. While Beery playing Pancho Villa is not on the same level as John Wayne in The Conqueror or Mickey Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, it’s still something to be aware of when watching Viva Villa! Beery isn’t the only one masquerading as a nationality he doesn’t possess, either. Most of the cast is populated by white actors in makeup.

The story opens with the local Mexican government confiscating land for their own benefit. A young Pancho Villa (Wallace Beery) witnesses his own father whipped to death for protesting this land siege, and he later kills one of the men who did it before fleeing into the hills of Chihuahua. Now grown up, Villa and his band of rebels, including Sierra (Leo Carrillo), his trusted ally, kill wealthy landowners and become heroes to their fellow “peons.” 

Villa is introduced to Francisco Madero (Henry B. Walthall), a distinguished and well-spoken man who resents what has become of Mexico under the rule of the current president, Porfirio Díaz. Madero convinces Villa to aid in the fight for liberty, not just for his own personal gain. Villa is humbled by Madero and agrees to fight for his cause. He is also attracted to Teresa Fay Wray), the sister of Don Felipe (Donald Cook) who introduced Villa to Madero. Teresa will become one of many women Villa finds himself attracted to despite already being married to his wife, Rosita (Katherine de Mille). The remainder of the film will follow Villa as he triumphs against all odds, then loses everything when trying to settle down after instilling Madero as the new leader of Mexico. In the end, though, it will be a woman, not a battlefield, that will be his final undoing. 

Viva Villa! is a product of its time in more ways than one. Outdated ideas about racial representation are just one part of it. There are also many limitations to the production that speak to a time when expenses were tighter and corners had to be cut. This was still in the heart of the Great Depression, and budget cuts can be seen throughout this production. There are several battles, especially when Villa conquers Juárez and Santa Rosalia, that occur entirely off screen. In one of the funniest moments of the entire film, this offscreen battle only happens because Johnny Sykes (Stuart Erwin), a reporter who Villa has befriended, mistakenly reported that Villa had already conquered Santa Rosalia. In order to not make it seem like the article is in error, Villa goes ahead, against the orders from his superiors, and defeats that heavily fortified city. 

Wallace Beery does a credible job playing the Mexican Bandit, Pancho Villa. This is not as strong of a performance as the one he gave as The Champ, but it is effective. The makeup and clothing effectively transform him into a character that is so effective that you can practically believe this is a man who has lived his whole life in the Mexican countryside. He is a man who revels in the violent lifestyle, is rough around the edges, and is prone to angry outbursts, yet he cares enough about his country to risk his life to uproot corrupt leaders and return the land back to the “peons.” Late in the film, he will find himself in charge only to realize he is not the man to be the leader of the government. That role doesn’t suit him the way leading his fighters does. 

Part of the film’s effectiveness is in the location shooting. This is not a studio lot film, shot in Los Angeles on a handful of dress-up façades. This was filmed on location in Mexico. The locations add an authenticity to the production that cannot be replicated elsewhere. It also allows for many of the background extras to be actual native Mexicans, many of whom were alive to have seen the events the film is depicting. This did contribute to some production problems, though, such as when Lee Tracy, who was originally cast as Johnny Sykes, was fired for urinating off a balcony onto military cadets during a parade. His replacement, Stuart Erwin, had to re-film all of Lee’s scenes and does such a good job at being a comedic foil to Beery that we don’t begrudge Lee’s departure.

This was a troubled production, burning through many writers and directors before finally being completed in 1934. You wouldn’t notice, though, as the completed film bears little to no evidence of the behind-the-camera woes. It’s a well-produced film that makes good use of the Mexican landscape and natives. This would have been a relatively recent story in the minds of the audiences of 1934, akin to watching something now that took place in the 2010s. This helped the production with historical accuracy and authenticity. That being said, we never get a good look at any of the cities mentioned throughout, which gives the film a somewhat limited scope. The film is lacking in any real elaborate set-pieces and instead has to rely on the acting to sell the drama. This works to a degree, but it does handicap the film in the end. This lack of scale would have been a stumbling block when voting for Outstanding Production of the year. Instead of Viva Villa!, the Academy voted for the Frank Capra romantic comedy It Happened One Night, a film none of the principal cast wanted to make. They made the right choice, but it’s easy to see that with just a few tweaks here and there, Viva Villa! could have been a legitimate contender. 

Academy Award Nominations:

Outstanding Production: David O. Selznick

Best Assistant Director: John S. Waters (won)

Best Adaptation: Ben Hecht

Best Sound Recording: Douglas Shearer

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Release Date: April 10, 1934

Running Time: 115 minutes

Not Rated

Starring: Wallace Beery, Fay Wray, and Leo Carrillo

Directed By: Jack Conway with Howard Hawks and William Wellman uncredited.