Arturo de Cordova Movies
Having lost Rudolph Valentino in a 1924 contract dispute, Paramount Pictures never gave up hope of discovering and nurturing a new "Latin Lover" type. Thus it was that Paramount signed Mexican actor Arturo de Cordova, popular in his native country's films since 1935, to a Hollywood contract in 1943. De Cordova was showcased in the small but memorable role of Augustin in Paramount's For Whom the Bell Tolls, then starred in a handful of subsequent features, the best of which was Frenchman's Creek (1944), in which he co-starred with Joan Fontaine. Returning to Mexico in the late 1940s, De Cordova continued to appear in Latin American films until his premature retirement in the early 1950s. On the whole, Arturo de Cordova's Spanish-language roles were more rewarding than his Hollywood assignments, especially his feverish portrayal of an insane aristocrat in Luis Bunuel's El (1951). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2003
In this film, a reclusive violin player is finally compelled to seek out the source of his mysterious birthday gifts. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- 1965
In this comedy, a spaced-out fellow marries a woman. The absent minded fellow has completely forgotten about the wife he already has. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1962
This crime drama is set within a Panamanian jungle and centers on a prison inmate who escapes during a spectacularly bloody prison riot. He then tries to evade the lawmen by surviving in the jungle. Unfortunately, he can't and eventually turns himself in. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Based on a story by the late 19th and early 20th-century fantasy and horror writer Arthur Machen, this adapted tale plays upon the magical, "brujo" components of Latin American culture that resonate with Machen's favorite themes. An apparently decent but very suspicious Dr. Morales (Arturo de Cordova) is accused by the police of murdering his wife (Amparo Rivelles), characterized as a "demon in skirts." Was there some sort of dark side to Mrs. Morales? Is her husband a killer? Orthodox religion comes under a harsh scrutiny in this suspenseful tale of mystery and crime. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arturo de Cordova, Amparo Rivelles, (more)
An intense drama about divorce portrayed by two leading stars of the Mexican screen. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1958
Mexican filmmaker Alfredo B. Crevenna directed this sci-fi thriller loosely based on the classic H.G. Wells novel. Augusto Benedico stars as Luis, a scientist who gives his new invisibility formula to his jailed brother, Carlos (Arturo de Cordova). Carlos escapes and is reunited with his beloved Beatriz (Ana Luisa Peluffo), but the invisibility potion turns him into an insane megalomaniac who plans to rule the world. The invisible madman murders Luis and begins committing acts of sabotage until Beatriz tricks him into a standoff with police. This overwrought version of the tale makes an interesting contrast with James Whale's 1933 version of the same story, which seems positively subdued by comparison. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arturo de Cordova, Ana Luisa Peluffo, (more)
Though Miercoles de Ceniza was released in English-speaking countries as Ash Wednesday, it bears no relation to the much-later Elizabeth Taylor vehicle of the same name. Virtually plotless, the film is a paean to the pomp, ceremony and splendor of the Catholic Church, as seen through the eyes of individual parishioners. The cinematography of Agustin Martinez Solares is superb, even when very little is going on. And the presence of Maria Felix and Arturo de Cordova in the cast assured the film a respective box-office take, despite its overall lack of a storyline. American distribution of Miercoles de Ceniza was hampered by the talkiness of the script, which required more than the usual alottment of subtitles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maria Felix, Arturo de Cordova, (more)
- 1957
The English-language title of this Mexican social drama is Boy's Town; the mood and texture of the film was obviously influenced by the 1938 Hollywood production of the same name. Arturo de Cordova stars as the real-life Padre Farias, who overcomes great obstacles to establish a Latin-American "boy's town" for wayward and neglected youth. The kids chosen to portray the Padre's charges are refreshingly natural and unaffected; also worthy of praise is the film's excellent location cinematography, courtesy of director Gilberto Martinez Solares' brother Augustin. As a bonus, the storyline's religious angle never overwhelms its entertainment value (and vice versa). La Ciudad de Los Ninos premiered at the 1957 San Sebastian Film Festival. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arturo de Cordova, Marga Lopez, (more)
- 1956
True to its title, Canasta de Cuentos Mexicanos (Basket of Mexican Tales) is based on a series of short stories, all written by reclusive The Treasure of the Sierra Madre author B. Traven. The first story concerns the marital travails of Pierre (Arturo de Cordova) and Lorraine (Lorraine Chanel). The second stars Pedro Armendariz and Maria Felix in a Latino variation of "The Taming of the Shrew." The final tale focuses on an Indian basket-weaver (Jorge Martinez de Hoyos), who proves a bit too clever for a pair of glib American tourists (Jack Kelly, Mari Blanchard). The all-star cast of Canasta de Cuentos Mexicanos enabled the film to secure good bookings on both sides of the border. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arturo de Cordova, Lorraine Chanel, (more)
- 1955
Maos Sangrentas translates to Bloody Hands, and that's just what this gruesome Brazilian melodrama delivers. The story begins when a gang of dangerous convicts escape from a penal colony. With the police in hot pursuit, the escapees cut a gory swath through the countryside. As his comrades are killed off one by one, the leader of the group descends into gibbering madness. In contrast to this, a subplot develops involving the least dangerous of the escapees, who murdered his wife in a peak of self-righteous rage and is now seriously in doubt about the wisdom of his deed. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arturo de Cordova, Tonia Carrero, (more)
The Mexican comedy Reportaje follows the wacky adventures that ensue when a man offers a large reward to the journalist that can uncover the best news story that occurs during New Year's Eve. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
Produced in Mexico, Stronghold was distributed in the U.S. by Lippert Pictures. The studio hoped that the presence of American film stars Veronica Lake and Zachary Scott would prove beneficial at the box-office. Set during Juarez' revolution against Austrian emperor Maximillian, the film casts Lake as Mary Stevens, a wealthy American visitor who is kidnapped by gentleman bandit Don Pedro Alvarez (Arturo de Cordova) and his gang. Alvarez plans to use the ransom money to help finance the revolution, but Mary manages to orchestrate governmental resistance against the bandit's schemes. Eventually, however, she realizes that Alvarez is a man of honor and patriotism. Conversely, Don Miguel Navarro (Zachary Scott), the "heroic" overseer of a silver mine owned by Mary, is actually a double-dyed villain, finally showing his hand in the film's spectacular finale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Veronica Lake, Zachary Scott, (more)
The English-language title of the Mexican La Ausente is The Absentee. The title is explained within the context of the story, though one has to be patient. Essentially, this is the story of one man's guilt: the wealthy man (Arturo Cordoba) has convinced himself that he has killed his wife, a fact that has a devastating effect on all that follows. Several plot convolutions come and go before the truth is out -- not to mention the truth behind the truth. More than one reviewer noted the resemblances between La Ausente and the much-earlier Hitchcock film Rebecca; also noted was the later film's choppy continuity, the result of one too much censorial edit. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arturo de Cordova, Rosita Quintana, (more)
The Spanish language romantic drama Las Tres Perfectas Casadas features Mexican film star Mauricio Garces as one of the points in a love triangle. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Miroslava Stern
- 1952
In El, it is director Luis Bunuel's contention that uncontrollable insanity can grow within even the most rational of men. Spanish aristocratic Arturo de Cordova, outwardly the picture of courtly charm, marries lovely Delia Garces, who is much younger than he. From the honeymoon onward, Cordova imagines that his bride's former lover is spying on them. At first his jealousy manifests itself in short bursts of violence against phantom intruders. But the middle-aged groom's lunacy blossoms, until he is prepared to literally sew his young bride up lest she be accessible to others. Bunuel alternates Cordova's disintegration with his standard attacks upon Catholicism; the church can offer nothing to this unhappy man but empty homilies, leaving him no choice but to lie to himself that he is "cured"--knowing deep down that he never will be. Historian William K. Everson hit the nail on the head when he described El as "the most clinical dissection yet of a paranoic's descent into total madness". Another critic has succinctly described the protagonist as "an Othello with the hero as his own Iago." El, which literally translates as "He", has been released in some markets as This Strange Passion. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arturo de Cordova, Delia Garces, (more)
Algo Flota Sobre el Agua translates as the somewhat less exotic-sounding Something Floats on the Water. Arturo de Cordova stars in this easygoing drama about a fishing community located off the Gulf of Mexico. There's no real plot to speak of, simply a series of realistic, affectionately detailed vignettes. Critics were unanimous in praising the film, but almost as unanimous in questioning the casting of 17-year-old Elsa Aguirre in a crucial adult role. No one, however, found any fault with the rugged, evocative cinematography of Augustin Martinez Solares. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arturo de Cordova, Elsa Aguirre, (more)
- 1948
Unusually lavish for an Eagle-Lion production, The Adventures of Casanova lacks only Technicolor and "star" names. Lensed in Mexico, the film stars Latin American heartthrob Arturo de Cordova in the title role, and MGM expatriate (and future Mexican citizen) Lucille Bremer as the lovely Lady Bianca. Though ample screen time is expended upon Casanova's amorous conquests, most of the film is in the swashbuckler mode, as the hero battles the despotic Austrian rules in 18th century Sicily. The film gets down to basics when Casanova squares off against his bitterest foe, Austrian envoy Count de Brissac John Sutton. Comedy relief is handled by Turhan Bey as Casanova's philosophical sidekick and George Tobias as a spy posing as a monk. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arturo de Cordova, Lucille Bremer, (more)
New Orleans is Republic Pictures' spin on such "musical origin" films as Birth of the Blues and Dixie. Covering nearly four decades, the story is a fanciful recreation of the "birth" of American jazz music. Arturo de Cordova plays Nick Duquesne, owner of a posh gambling house in turn-of-the-century New Orleans (yes, that's an uncredited Shelley Winters as Duquesne's secretary!) When the "good" people of the town forced Duquesne to pack up and leave, he relocates in Chicago, where he discovers that his customers are turned on by hot jazz. Hiring bandleader Louis Armstrong to entertain his patrons, Duquesne no longer has to rely on gambling to make a living. Romance enters the picture in the form of Miralee Smith (Dorothy Patrick), a straightlaced student of classical music who learns to kick up her heels and shed her inhibitions at the sound of jazz. New Orleans is the only mainstream Hollywood feature good enough to cast Billie Holliday in a major role: true, she's playing a maid, but a maid with the most exquisitve singing voice this side of Heaven. The film's highlight is the Holliday/Armstrong duet "Do You Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans", surely one of the great moments of movie-musical history. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Alexander, Louis Armstrong, (more)
