Midaq Alley (film)

Midaq Alley (El callejón de los milagros, also released as The Alley of Miracles) is a 1995 Mexican film adapted from the novel by Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz, written by Vicente Leñero and directed by Jorge Fons. The film deals with complex issues such as gay and lesbian related topics, the lower-middle class of Mexico City, and the lives of many people.

The story is told from three perspectives: Don Ru (Ernesto Gómez Cruz), the owner of a cantina where most of the men in the story gather to drink and play dominoes, Alma (Salma Hayek), the beautiful girl of the neighborhood who dreams of passion, and Susanita (Margarita Sanz who won an Ariel Award for this role), the owner of the apartment complex where Alma and many of the other characters live.

The film was critically acclaimed by international critics. It earned 11 Ariel Awards, including Best Picture at the 37th Ariel Awards and more than 49 international awards and nominations. Pan's Labyrinth and El Callejón de los Milagros were named as the best Mexican films by IMDb and Entertainment Weekly. The film was selected as the Mexican entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 68th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.

Plot
The lives of the inhabitants of El Callejón de los Milagros, in downtown Mexico City, are as closely knitted as the threads of a rug. Fifty-something Don Ru owns a small "cantina" where all the men spend afternoons playing domino. He's tired of his longtime marriage with Eusebia and has recently discovered new feelings inside his heart. It does not matter if these feelings are not aimed to a young lady but to a young clerk after all, as one of the characters says, "it's platonic love". Don Ru's son Chava does not like what he sees and almost kills his father's lover. Running away from Don Ru's anger, Chava escapes to the US with his friend Abel who is deeply in love with beautiful Alma, the daughter of Doña Cata, a tarot reader with bad luck in love. Susanita, the ugly landlady looking for love; Guicho, Don Ru's cynical employee, Maru, Don Fidel, Doña Flor, Zacarias and mean Jose Luis complete the cast of characters of this complex portrait of lives.

Structure
The film is divided into four successive and clearly labeled chapters. The first three are named after key individuals, and the fourth wraps up the story. Each chapter starts at the same time, with the same game of dominoes, and describes the same time period, but from the viewpoints of the named people; the chapters tell each person's story. Each chapter thus provides the viewer with details which help to explain things which happened in the other chapters.


 * 1) Rutilio deals with Don Ru's dissatisfaction with his marriage and his poorly hidden homosexual love affair with a young man.
 * 2) Alma deals with Alma's life and her falling in love with Abel. He leaves with Chava for the U.S. and Alma "disappears". She has been seduced and ends up in a whorehouse.
 * 3) Susanita is the landlady with horrible teeth whose feelings and romantic hopes are awakened. She marries Guicho.
 * 4) The Return describes the return of Abel and Chava, and Abel's search for Alma. Chava is married and has his wife and baby boy with him. Abel finds Alma in the whorehouse and is heartbroken. He tries to attack her pimp and is stabbed several times. He dies in her arms.

Cast

 * Ernesto Gómez Cruz as Rutilio (Don Ru)
 * María Rojo as Doña Cata
 * Salma Hayek as Alma
 * Bruno Bichir as Abel
 * Delia Casanova as Eusebia
 * Margarita Sanz as Susanita
 * Claudio Obregón as Don Fidel
 * Juan Manuel Bernal as Chava
 * Abel Woolrich as Zacarías
 * Luis Felipe Tovar as Güicho
 * Daniel Giménez Cacho as José Luis
 * Gina Morett as Doña Flor
 * Óscar Yoldi as Ubaldo El Poeta ("The poet")
 * Esteban Soberanes as Jimy
 * Eugenia Leñero as Tina
 * Tiaré Scanda as Maru

Ariel Awards
Won:
 * Best Film
 * Best Direction for Jorge Fons
 * Best Actress for Margarita Sanz
 * Best Supporting Actor for Luis Felipe Tovar
 * Best Costume Design for Jaime Ortiz
 * Best Editing for Carlos Savage hijo
 * Best Make-Up for Elvia Romero
 * Best Original Music Theme or Song for Lucía Álvarez
 * Best Original Score for Lucía Álvarez
 * Best Production Design for Carlos Gutiérrez
 * Best Screenplay for Vicente Leñero

Nominations:
 * Best Actor for Ernesto Gómez Cruz
 * Best Actor in a Minor Role for Óscar Yoldi
 * Best Actress for Salma Hayek
 * Best Actress in a Minor Role for Delia Casanova
 * Best Actress in a Minor Role for María Rojo
 * Best Cinematography for Carlos Marcovich
 * Best Set Design  for Carlos Gutiérrez
 * Best Sound for David Baksht
 * Best Supporting Actor for Daniel Giménez Cacho
 * Best Supporting Actor for Esteban Soberanes
 * Best Supporting Actress  for Tiaré Scanda

Berlin International Film Festival
Wins: Nominations:
 * Special Mention for the exceptional narrative quality
 * Golden Bear for Jorge Fons

Chicago International Film Festival
Wins:
 * ''Audience Choice Award"

Goya Award
Wins:
 * Best Spanish Language Foreign Film

Gramado Film Festival
Wins:
 * Best Director for Jorge Fons
 * Best Supporting Actress for Margarita Sanz

Nominations:
 * Best Latin Film

Guadalajara Film Festival
Wins:
 * Audience Award

Havana Film Festival
Wins:
 * Best Director for Jorge Fons
 * Best Screenplay for Vicente Leñero
 * Grand Coral (First prize) for Jorge Fons

Mexican Cinema Journalists
Wins:
 * Best Film

Paraguay Film Festival
Wins:
 * Best Actress for Margarita Sanz
 * Best Actor for Bruno Bichir

Toulouse Latin America Film Festival
Wins:
 * Special Mention for the distribution of the film

Valladolid International Film Festival
Wins:
 * Best Actor for Bruno Bichir
 * Silver Spike for Jorge Fons

Nominations:
 * Golden Spike for Jorge Fons