Cantinflas Movies
A small man with big ears, a distinctive mustache, pants that never stayed up, and a jaunty little cap cocked upon his eternally mussed hair, comic actor Cantinflas is beloved throughout the Spanish-speaking world and considered the Mexican Charlie Chaplin. Like Chaplin, Cantinflas' frenetic brand of slapstick was as balletic as it was athletic, leading others to compare him to Buster Keaton. His ability to combine humor with pathos was also decidedly Chaplin-esque, while his portrayal of the cocky, optimistic, but naïve little guy evoked Harold Lloyd. But despite such comparisons, Cantinflas' overall style was unique. Unlike the great silent funnymen to which he is compared, Cantinflas worked during the sound era. He usually played a smart-alecky peasant or average fellow and was famous for weasling out of trouble with the authorities by overwhelming them with intimidatingly pompous machine-gun speed monologues that, while sounding gloriously informed, signified absolutely nothing.He was born Mario Moreno Reyes and started out singing and dancing in traveling tent variety shows known as carpas. He gained a large following as a circus clown and acrobat and then became a bullfighter/bullring clown, the Mexican equivalent of American rodeo clowns who distract bulls from performers in trouble. Cantinflas made his film debut in 1936 with No te Engages Corazon. Forty-nine more films followed. His humor is deeply rooted in Spanish cultures; this combined with his unique patter did not translate well to non-Spanish-speaking audiences. He did have one English-language success when he played Passepartout, loyal valet of Phinneas Fogg, in the smash hit Around the World in 80 Days (1956). He did not make another Hollywood film until 1960's notorious box-office bomb Pepe. After that rare failure, Cantinflas returned to making Spanish-language films. Following his retirement in the late '60s, Cantinflas devoted his life to helping others through charity and humanitarian organizations, especially those dedicated to helping children. In 1988, he received a lifetime achievement award from the Mexican Academy of Cinema. In 1993, shortly before his death from lung cancer, Cantinflas was named a "symbol of peace and happiness of the Americas." ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1984
Volume 2 on this trip with Cantinflas, takes you into space in an alien space scooter. Lean about sports when you return to Earth! ~ All Movie Guide
- 1982
Take a trip through time with this classic cartoon character, Cantiflas. Visit with King Tut, Daniel Boone Madame Curie and other famous people. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1981
A young man never ceases to find trouble--or senoritas. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- 1975
Cantinflas (Mario Moreno) appears in several separate stories in this film, all of which deal with bureaucrats of one sort or another. In the first episode, Cantinflas is a man who earns his living writing letters for illiterate people, an evantelista. In the second, he is a low-level government bureaucrat in situations which free him to criticize abuses. The next episode has him, hat in hand, coming to a bureaucrat for some help, and in yet another episode, he helps a deaf-mute girl. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cantinflas, Lucia Mendez, (more)
- 1969
This situation comedy finds a court-appointed attorney representing the poor and downtrodden of Mexico City against the Establishment. Justo (Cantinflas) is the dedicated lawyer who encounters a diverse and hilarious clientele. With the help of his secretary Angelica (Lupita Ferrer), in court and in bed, he fights for the rights of the underprivileged against the elite. Justo also falls for a pretty chorus girl (Susana Salvat) who is more than willing to express her amorous appreciation to her defender. This is an excellent comedy vehicle for Cantinflas, an adored comedian in the Spanish-speaking world. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cantinflas, Lupita Ferrer, (more)
- 1969
Popular Mexican comedian Cantinflas stars in this comedy about a druggist from Sonora, Mexico who travels to Arizona in search of a lost gold mine. He is helped by some friendly Indians when the bad guys try to give him trouble. The explorer tries to find the mine that he has inherited but has been lost to time and the elements. Captured and tied to a pole, he is nearly the victim of a fiery death before he endears himself to the Indian chief when he extracts a painful tooth. The Chief (Manver) lets the druggist go and it isn't long before the chief's beautiful daughter casts romantic glances towards the inept explorer in this Spanish language feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cantinflas, Isela Vega, (more)
- 1963
Cantinflas, known the world around for his Jerry Lewis-style antics, seems more like Peter Sellers in this hilarious Mexican comedy. Short on plot but long on laughs, the innocent comedian falls victim to excellently contrived cliches as a special delivery man caught in the middle of intrigue and spies. Cantinflas also expands into singing and dancing opportunities. The film also features a spectacular Latin dance sequence by Rafael de Cordoba. ~ Lucinda Ramsey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cantinflas, Gina Romand, (more)
- 1962
Mexico's top comic Cantinflas tackles the world of filmmaking in this satire by director Miguel M. Delgado, who often worked with the comic. Rather than playing an "extra" in the usual sense of the word, Cantinflas is a man who hangs around the studios and helps anyone who needs his advice while at the same time envisioning his own versions of how certain scenes should be shot. Both angles provide ample opportunities for very witty, subtle barbs at the foibles of the industry. When a young, aspiring actress gets help and acting lessons from the "extra" occasional sly remarks sock it to the world of filmmaking. And when the "extra" imagines scenes -- such as one during the French Revolution or an episode from Camille -- Cantinflas himself appears properly suited out and disguised, and wreaking the usual havoc. This is a highly entertaining Cantinflas comedy. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cantinflas
- 1960
Popular Mexican comedian Cantinflas (Mario Moreno) plays the title character in this star-studded, amusing comedy drama by George Sidney. Pepe is the same sort of impoverished stereotype Cantinflas made famous in several of his comedies; in this case he is a hired hand on a ranch who chases down a horse for his employer. A boozing Hollywood director buys a white stallion belonging to Pepe's boss and the determined ranch hand decides to take off for Hollywood to get the horse back. Once in this new and strange environment -- where a lot of cameos by the likes of Jimmy Durante, Frank Sinatra, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Bing Crosby, Maurice Chevalier, and many others enliven the action -- Pepe becomes a friend to the alcoholic director. Unfortunately, what is missing here is "Cantinfletico." That is the nickname for the rambling non-sequitur characteristic of Cantinflas that no one else could master. The film was originally released at 195 minutes, then edited down to 157. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cantinflas, Dan Dailey, (more)
This Brigitte Bardot vehicle is better known by its American title, The Night Heaven Fell. Bardot plays a young, sensuous French girl named Ursula, who arrives in a Spanish mountain community to visit her aunt (Alida Valli) and uncle (Pepe Nieto). It isn't long before uncle is killed by handsome stranger Lamberto (Stephen Boyd). Against her better judgement, Ursula falls in love with Lamberto, and helps him to elude the authorities-thereby beating her Aunt (who also loves Lamberto) to the punch . The Night Heaven Fell was the third feature-length directorial effort of Bardot's then-husband Roger Vadim. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alida Valli, Stephen Boyd, (more)
- 1958
Each year for several years running, Cantinflas, one of Mexico's most popular and beloved comics, came out with a new film, and Sube y Baja is his 1959 offering. As in most of these films, Cantinflas plays a set role or roles, such as a doctor or a priest. In this case, he is the model sports "hero." He is a football player and a speedboat racer, also a rich man and a poor one, and in all cases, he keeps to the character he developed long ago -- that of the double-talking, fast-talking, funny-talking slippery man who confounds everyone and keeps Spanish-speaking audiences laughing and coming back for more each year. As in his other films, his intriguing looks and "adorable" attitude attract women with no problem. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Teresa Velazquez
- 1957
Director Riccardo Freda does not take this uninspired, turgid spy film very far in its story about a federal agent (Edmund Purdom) and his efforts at blasting apart an international drug cartel. In one of the more unlikely turns of a plotline, the agent falls in love with the daughter of the cartel's head honcho. Needless to say, he is not expecting his future father-in-law to give his blessings at any possible nuptials. Instead, the action pits the agent against his arch-enemy as circumstances plod along (unless racing through an action scene in speeded-up time) to a final and deadly confrontation. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edmund Purdom, Geneviève Page, (more)
- 1953
Few Mexican filmgoers gave a fig about the quasi-melodramatic plotline of El Senor Fotografo. The star was the incomparable Cantinflas, and that was all that mattered. Per the title, Cantinflas plays a trouble-prone photographer, whose assignments inevitably end in slapstick confusion. The "straight" plotline concerns governmental corruption, a topic with which most Mexicans were all too familiar. With Cantinflas involved, the bad guys are routed in high comic fashion. The cinematography in El Senor Fotografo was in the skilled hands of Mexico's top lensman, Gabriel Figueroa. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cantinflas, Rosita Arenas, (more)
- 1943
Enjoy this version of Shakespeare's play starring Mexican comedian Cantinflas. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1942
The title may be Tres Mosqueteros (The Three Musketeers), but this Mexican comedy has less to do with Dumas than with its star, the inimitable Cantinflas. While visiting a movie studio where a film version of The Three Musketeers is in production, Cantinflas dozes off and dreams that he's D'Artagnan, while his three disreputable neighborhood buddies show up as the Musketeers. The plot then segues into the standard "Queen's Necklace" storyline, with our hero saving the French monarchy from the wicked machinations of Cardinal Richelieu (Angel Garasa). Almost as funny as the Ritz Brothers' sendup of the same material, Cantinflas' spin on The Three Musketeers is definite the more ribald of the two films. Best of all is the stunning cinematography of the great Gabriel Figueroa, who lavishes as much care on this farce as he would on such films as The Pearl and The Fugitive. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ángel Garasa
- 1941
When Cantiflas accidently captures a gang of criminals he is elevated to police officer status in this comedy. ~ All Movie Guide
