The Mexican Revolution at the Movies: The “Real” Revolution on Film in the United States

Using four U.S. made movies, Viva Villa, Viva Zapata, The Old Gringo, and

And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself, spread over seven decades, as its core, the paper will argue that despite the sometimes obvious ethnic stereotyping and the clear mystification of the main characters, these films actually depict accurately the motivations of everyday Mexicans to rebel.