Whose Pancho Villa?

Films that celebrate heroic "others" through the eyes of well-meaning Anglo protagonists are not in short supply. Glory had Matthew Broderick as Col. Robert Gould Shaw, leading the U.S. Civil War's first, all-black volunteer company. Cry Freedom had Kevin Kline as Donald Woods, friend to South African black activist Steve Biko. Now, HBO Film's And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself has Eion Bailey as Frank Thayer, the well-meaning white guy to Antonio Banderas' intense and charismatic Pancho Villa.

Larry Gelbart (Tootsie, Barbarians at the Gate), best known for his work on the TV series M*A*S*H, wrote the script. In its television incarnation, M*A*S*H is often considered a vehicle to critique the Vietnam War, though set during the Korean War. In Starring Pancho Villa, Gelbart does similar work -- using the past to comment on the present. And this is where And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself strikes its most important chord.

The film takes place in 1914, when two profoundly significant events were occurring: the development of the motion picture and the Mexican Revolution. Intrigued with the new medium, Villa contacts the Mutual Film Company -- co-owned by flamboyant filmmaker D.W. Griffith -- with the invitation to film the Villistas in battle. Sent to seal the deal is Mutual production assistant Thayer, who ends up seeing combat at an uncomfortably close range and, of course, becomes enthralled with Villa in the process.

Though Villa's primary goal is to finance his rebel forces, he believes a film would be a useful alternative to the W. Randolph Hearst-owned newspapers that were actively vilifying the Revolution. As it turns out, Hearst owned acres of oil-rich land in Mexico and so had a deep financial interest in aborting the Revolution, as did Mexican robber barons whose bloated wealth was in obscene contrast to the poor campesinos for which Villa was fighting.

When critics pan the early rushes of the film, Thayer is fired. Believing that the complexity of Villa is absent from the film, he convinces Mutual president Harry Aitkin (Jim Broadbent) to give him another try -- along with ideas to make it more photogenic. The result is the now lost, The Life of General Villa, which included the first "scenes of actual battle ever to be filmed live, for viewing in the safety and comfort of the movie theatre (which would, in our time, be replaced by the safety and comfort of our living rooms)," Gelbart states in HBO press materials.

And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself makes some pointed criticisms about how truth is a casualty of the new medium at the turn of the century, yet parallels to the present state of modern media are unmistakable.

"We see the birth of a practice that went on to prove that the lens is mightier than the sword. If anyone doubts this, just check out the evening news. Any evening. Any news," Gelbart says.

When Villa sees the script to the second project, he is outraged at the "artistic license" which casts him as an aggrieved former landowner and worse, as the future president of Mexico. Still, he understands, perhaps more than Thayer, how powerful the new medium is. As a public-relations effort, he goes along with the second film deal, insisting that the Mexican premiere benefit widows and orphans of the Revolution.

Others in the cast include Matt Day as the ever-present journalist John Reed. Alan Arkin is excellent as Sam Drebben, a mercenary from Brooklyn, as is Michael McKean as foppish director William Christy Cabanne. Wasted is Alexa Davalos, who plays film star Teddy Sampson and Thayer's love interest. (I was much more interested in knowing about Villa's nameless, rifle-toting lover.)

In the end, the romantic vision of Villa prevails -- through Thayer's adoring gaze. Leading up to the final scene, Abraham (Cosme Alberto), a former Villista befriended by Thayer asks, "How will the sons of Mexico remember our Pancho Villa?" Personally, I think Abraham, not Thayer, would have provided a more profound response.

This nation's demographics clearly indicate that there are other narrative voices out there. Someday, Hollywood has to catch on, right? Am I right? Sigh.

And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself premieres Sunday at 8:30pm on HBO. Encores air throughout September. Check local listings.

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What's New?

PrimeTime Tejano, one of Austin's longest-running cable access shows, has moved! The show now airs Thursdays at 8pm on the Austin Music Network.

UPN series premieres: Jake 2.0 premieres Wednesday at 8pm. The Mullets premieres Thursday, 8:30pm.