“It’s cinema” is often a humorous expression used when very important things happen in our daily lives that are worthy of being portrayed on the big screen.
Beyond the silly expression and if we take it with the respect that the seventh art deserves, we can affirm that both the locations of Saint Michael Like the stories that are lived in its steep alleys, they deserve to be in a projection room.
And with this same statement, proclaimed directors such as Robert Rodriguez seem to agree and so we bring you a list of audiovisual productions from Hollywood to local level that have used our beautiful city in their cinematographic productions, ideal for weekend marathons.
The violent and funny vision of Robert Rodriguez, who we also remember for productions such as Grindhouse and Sin City, was captivated by San Miguel, choosing us as the location for “Once Upon a Time in Mexico,” which would culminate his Mexico trilogy.
In this story of revenge, intrigue and posters, the statue of Fray Juan San Miguel de Allende is portrayed as well as our famous Parish while the character of El Mariachi played by Antonio Banderas plays his guitar in tribute to his lost love Carolina.
Through flashbacks, Insurgentes Street is the perfect setting to show us an action scene in which the couple in love jumps from a hotel onto a moving bus. This film also portrays the Bullring as well as Lake Laja and the Temple of the Immaculate Conception.
Starring the biggest Hollywood celebrities of the time, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts visited several places in San Miguel to film scenes for “The Mexican,” where the premise includes Pitt’s character having to recover a prized gun or suffer the consequences of his failure.
“All The Pretty Horses” is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by acclaimed author Cormac McCarthy, which follows two friends who leave Texas to venture into Mexico, thus beginning a series of events that will change their lives. Although the book was critically acclaimed, the film adaptation suffered from the same, as it released a version that left out important parts of the book and lacked an engaging pace.
Moving on to national territory and Mexican filmography, we now go with this production by Manolo Caro. “The Immoral Life of the Ideal Couple” is about a couple who met in their early years but were separated by fate. The locations selected for their scenes were the Angela Peralta Theater, the Municipal Palace and of course, La Parroquia.
Starring Mario Moreno, “Cantinflas”, “El Padrecito” is a brilliant film from the Mexican cinema of yesteryear, characterized by its white humor and wit. It is a film that is really worth revisiting to understand a little better the golden age of Mexican Cinema and see the evolution of time through our city.
“A Father Not So Fatherly” tells the story of the reunion of an elderly man with his children in this film that will make you laugh out loud and was recorded entirely in San Miguel.
Four elderly friends embark on a road trip in “El Último Trago” to fulfill the last wish of one of them in this film that was the last of actress Columba Domínguez.
We hope you enjoy these film recommendations and we challenge you to see how many of the locations from these films you recognize. It's San Miguel, it's cinema!
