![]() They embraced the whimsy that pervades Mexican culture, but rather than laughing at the roly-poly mariachis, the mariachis were laughing with us. Gutierrez and Guillermo del Toro were able to pay homage to such a rich and beautiful cultural heritage in a way that was honest, respectful, real, and most importantly, fun. So it was an amazing relief to see that Jorge R. When a movie attempts to portray the culture in a more “real”-or rather, less comical-it ends up coming across as dirty, dangerous, and disheveled. Too often, Mexican culture (and as a result, Mexican people) end up as the butt end of a cultural joke. Tackling Mexican culture has always been a struggle in film. Well, The Book of Life actually accomplishes what those coloring books have been trying to do for years. So to have a day devoted entirely to death that is actually … happy? All those well-meaning lessons that American children get only help to perpetuate the confusion surrounding this extremely important cultural holiday. Death is something to be feared in our culture. All fairly negative associations when compared to how we view almost every other holiday. Why on earth would anyone celebrate death? Just look at how we view Halloween. Even when we “celebrated” the Day of the Dead in elementary school, it never made sense to me. And for the majority of today’s cultures that are predominantly white, death is something morbid and frightening. That’s not a good thing or a bad thing, it’s just a fact.
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