La Cucaracha
La Cucaracha
| 31 August 1934 (USA)
La Cucaracha Trailers

Señor Martinez, a famous theater owner, visits a local café in Mexico because of its reputation for good food and to audition the famous dancer who performs there. Martinez tells the café owner that if the dancer is as good as he has heard, he will offer the dancer a contract to perform in his theater. The café's female singer hears about this and is determined that he won't leave the café without her.

Reviews
HottWwjdIam There is just so much movie here. For some it may be too much. But in the same secretly sarcastic way most telemarketers say the phrase, the title of this one is particularly apt.
Bluebell Alcock Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies
Ortiz Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.
Delight Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.
MartinHafer "La Cucaracha" is a short that features lots of singing and dancing....and about a billion choruses of the song! Yes, THAT song...the one about cockroaches. Señor Martinez comes to the cantina looking for talent for his shows. Conchita is afraid that Martinez will take away Pancho, so she spends most of the film annoying Martinez--to drive him off! "La Cucaracha" is a film that would have been completely forgotten over the years except for one thing--it's the first color film made using true color. Let me explain. In the early part of the 20th century, a few films actually were hand-painted--and the results were color...or sorts. Later, two-color processed (such as Two Color Technicolor and Cinecolor) were developed and the results were fair. The problem was that the films looked very orange and very green and a true spectrum of colors was absent. So, for example, true blues were not possible with the films. Now when you see "La Cucaracha", you might not be very impressed with the color. It looks garish--and a lot like it's been colorized but with much more vibrant colors (particularly blues and yellows). I am not sure if this ugly look is because of the effects of time and degradation on the film stock, the quality of the new Three Color Technicolor or because the 'experts' just didn't know what they were doing since it was such a new thing. But, regardless, the film is mega-important from a historical perspective. And, by the way, some might think "Becky Sharp" was the first full-color film. It's actually the first full-color FULL-LENGTH film--"La Cucaracha" was a short. Overall, the film is mildly entertaining and moderately funny--but nothing more. It's only fair entertainment but for film buffs it's a must-see.
tavm Singer Chatita (Steffi Duna) does not want her dancer lover Pancho (Don Alvarado) to get an offer from theater producer Esteban Martinez (Paul Porcasi). So she pretends to serve Martinez food and insults him at various times. After she sings the short's title song, Pancho then does a dance with his partner as Chatita tries to sabotage it by reprising her song. Martinez, seeing the results, offers them both a job just before the rest of the dancers with the leads close the show. Historical because of the first use of three-strip Technicolor in live action, I found myself entertained by all the Hispanic surroundings and amused by the deep red face that resulted when the producer customer ate his Tabasco filled food! The plot was slight but great music throughout makes this one of the most entertaining shorts I've ever seen. Worth a look for any film enthusiasts.
Snow Leopard It's pretty lightweight, but "La Cucaracha" is fun to watch, and it is not without a couple of clever touches to go with the colorful setting, the likable characters, and the simple story. The early Technicolor still looks pretty good, and it has held up better than the sound (as the other reviewers here have mentioned, the sound is sometimes a bit muddled). It also has a good energy level and an upbeat feel to it.Steffi Duna stars as a café singer in love with the dancer who also performs there. She becomes worried when a visiting impresario considers taking the dancer to the city to give him his big break, so she makes plans to disrupt his visit. Duna works well in the part, since she is attractive in a mischievous sort of way, and she makes the simple character believable. Paul Porcasi, so often cast in tiny parts, gets a chance to play a larger role here, and he is well cast as Martinez.The story is somewhat predictable, but pleasant, and it has some funny moments. The whole movie works pretty well for a short feature of its era and genre.
didi-5 ... even if the film is rather pointless. Made by RKO to show off the sumptuous three-strip Technicolor process for the first time (after several two-strip bits and full-length features had been made through the period of 1929-1933), La Cucaracha is very thin on story - it is mostly set in a bar with dancing, singing (the title song, obviously), and a bit of fighting.The sound quality wasn't brilliant but the visual quality can't be faulted. This movie is on DVD as an extra to RKO's Dixiana (itself boasting beautiful two-strip colour in the final sequences) but is really on worth a look for historical interest.