A great film! Captures the essence of Mexico's political life, with a lot of humor and a great story. It's also a very well made... the story is perfectly constructed, the photography is beautiful and the acting is top of the line, with Demian Alcazar and Pedro Armendariz, Jr. clearly stealing the show. For Mexicans it should be a rather bittersweet experience... you can't help but laugh at the situation, but it's also so real that you can feel a little frustrated with your government. Filmed almost entirely in brown and sepia tones, to make it as close to 'black and white' as possible.
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El_Chango20 February 2000
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WylieJJordan16 September 2006A perfect and abundantly Mexican version of Lord Acton's dictum, "Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely." In 1949 a local official of the ruling PRI (Pedro Armendariz as López) chooses a humble janitor (Damián Alcázar, as Juan Vargas) to be presidente municipal ("mayor") of a dusty, dirty little village in northern México. Vargas' is supposed to bring "modernity and social justice" but as he gradually assumes power, he grows progressively more corrupt. He even acquires the 1930's symbol of rural elegance in México: a Packard. Vargas eventually challenges his mentor, with surprising but perhaps predictable results.
The film was initially denied release because it paints a hilarious but extremely negative picture of women, of local priests, and of local government. It also includes a great deal of amazingly foul, but ultimately very funny, Mexican slang. Even the title, La Ley de Herodes, is part of a very crude saying that might (with considerable liberty) be translated as "Law Blue: Do it to them or they'll do it to you." -
fiodorovich21 February 2006If you want to understand La Ley De Herodes you need to be aware of what the PRI was really on Mexico. First of all it began as a Party that unified the state after our famous and violent revolution the PRI unified Mexico, it started as a good cause but with time it degraded and became what we could see in the movie. At that time, I mean 1940 the Miguel Aleman period there wasn't a Party or force that opposite the PRI, because they control everyone, but they control everyone because they on their side the workers and peasants, because they supported them on their works allowing them to have their syndicates and supporting their demands. Now thats why I think we cant just go like "yes I think that La Ley De Herodes reflects perfectly how the PRI was" I repeat we have to understand the historical contest so that we can make an objective opinion.
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cjclark27 July 2000I first heard about this film on NPR in an interesting program about the ruckus this film may have caused with with it's own government. This lively film pulls a number of punches at politics of this era. A sharp and amusing black political comedy that keeps you engaged from the very beginning. A lowly civil servant gets a "promotion" to become the law in a desolate backwater Mexican village. It is a universal tale of greed, corruption and fate which had me chuckling for hours. If you can imagine a tasty, spicy satire pie baked up with treachery, a wry wit and superb performances, then by all means take of big bite of this delicious treat.
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oibas14 December 2001To understand "La Ley de Herodes" and its historical significance, it is necessary to consider a study of the backdrop behind its production and release. LDH is a product of the decadence of the crumbling, rotting 70-year old regime of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). The 90s were frantic years in Mexico. The Zapatista uprising, the murder of the PRI's presidential candidate/next president (apparently by his own party), the "Tequila Effect" recession, several political murders and former president Salinas' exile (as well as his brother's arrest for money laundering)... all these events created a dissatisfaction so huge that forced the government to loosen its freedom of expression. It would have been impossible to release this movie, or to listen to Molotov's angry music without the bitter complacency of the government. And in a way, LDH signals the end of the PRI regime and its ousting from the executive in the year 2000. Mexico is undergoing change. It's slow, and it's painful, but it's happening. The PRI has not fully disappear, though. You can now see the Juan Vargas figure clinging in congress,trying to obstruct change, holding to its last source of power. A wonderful mambo score, by the way.
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lastliberal1 January 2010An excellent hidden gem from writer/director Luis Estrada that won over 20 awards.
The Mayor of San Pedro loses his head while trying to abscond with the town's money, so the party puts in a figurehead (Damián , - Crónicas, The Crime of Father Amaro) until the elections.
Soon, he figures out the way of politics and is enjoying the benefits - and they are hot benefits! Soon, he is killing his enemies and extorting money like the rest of them. Of course, he manages to rise through his evil as all politicians do.
Alcázar was outstanding in this political satire, as was Salvador Sánchez, Guillermo Gil, and Isela Vega. -
aztecp14 April 2000Satire is very difficult to pull off, but this one is a classic. It works beautifully, it's cleverly crafted, it's devilishly funny. The acting is superb. It was a joy to see Isela Vega again! I can't remember any other Mexican movie being as devastatingly critical of our "perfect dictatorship" as this one. It's really a pretty accurate depiction of the morass that corruption has created in Mexico and of the attitude of the ruling party towards the nation. The impunity, the cynicism, the paternalism, the graft, the slime, the crime, it's no exaggeration. The government is so out of touch and so stupid that they even tried to censor it. Needless to say, the movie has been playing to packed houses in Mexico. I hope it breaks all box office records. Even better, it should be Mexico's entry to the Academy Awards.
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jcperez_19742 February 2003Herodes' Law is great and perfectly accurate parody of the corruption that characterizes most of the Latin America's states (for not saying ALL of them). Brilliantly, director Luis Estrada uses a very poor small town to develop his exaggerate parody about the behavior of Latin-American rulers. I'm sure that for us who were raised in small Latin-American towns, have notice that our governors are just a small sample of how things works in the official grounds.
Good photography, characters perfectly conceived and excellent performances makes Lay Ley de Herodes a very enjoyable, sometimes disgusting, film. Don't miss it 9/10 -
fatcat-734501 October 2021Election time is nigh and a mid-level politician wants to win his party's favor to get a shot at a higher position, but an oversized scandal in an otherwise insignificant village threatens to become a thorn in the party's side if it is not brought under control. He sends a low-level patsy to quietly quell the unrest in the town so that his promotion goes according to plan.
Most reviewers call this movie a satire or a black comedy, and to be sure, both of these terms apply, but I see it as being most precisely categorised as an allegory.
The characters are not very well-developed and they clearly represent archetypes in a system where corruption is allowed to flourish. Juan Vargas is supposed to be the simple-minded but idealistic rank-and-file party member who believes in the revolution's ideals. The gringo is the rapacious foreigner looking to profit off of the woes and troubles of the people in a poorer country. The townspeople represent the repressed lower and middle classes which bear their troubles for a good long while before exploding in random acts of violence.
We know these characters not because the movie develops them, but rather on an intuitive level. In fact, the film just presents them as extreme charicatures that fulfill their function in this parable on corruption.
It's not that I doubt that there are many examples of corrupt politicians and priests who are so brazen that they have become one-dimensional silent film villains; nor do I think there are townsfolk who have been so long repressed and left in ignorance that they are, on their own end, equally one-dimensional in accepting their situation. No, the characters in this movie might be genuine, but truth is no defense in cinema - the film must make us believe what it is presenting.
No doubt this is a very important movie about a very important topic, but it's a bit too simple and preachy for my taste. It tries to rely on humor and archetypes to get its message across rather than plot and character development (and the humor often falls flat, at that).
If you think of something like Gulliver's Travels, on the other hand, that book can stand alone as a good fantasy novel even beyond its satirical message.
The same goes for El Infierno, which would go on to become Luis Estrada's magnum opus and is very similar to this film. It informs on corruption and the drug trade by means of a riveting story that stands on its own even beyond its satirical content.
Honourable Mentions: Gulliver's Travels (2010). Even though the book by Jonathan Swift is one of the most excellent satires of all time, this movie has nothing to do with the original other than the title. It's also boring. I mention it to recommend you don't watch it. -
jotix10023 November 2004Juan Vargas, the hero of "La Ley de Herodes" learns quickly his role as mayor of the forgotten town where the ruling PRI party has chosen him to preside. The town and its people stand as a Mexican metaphor for what's wrong in the country, as a whole.
At the beginning we watch as Juan is reluctant to follow the steps his predecessors took in governing the town, which stands as a microcosm of the way things have been done in Mexico. It speaks volumes that Mexico is one of the oldest 'democracies' in Latin America, where corruption is rampant. On wonders if Mexico is the role model, what can be found in other Latin countries. Mind you, not everything is perfect in the good old USA!
It is to Luis Estrada's credit that he has been able to do this satire that pokes fun at politics, but at the same time, it makes one thing clear: watch what politicians will do once they take public office.
Damian Alcazar is perfect as the goofy mayor Juan Vargas, who the bosses in the capital think he will be perfect for the job. Pedro Armendariz Jr. does wonders with his interpretation of a corrupt party higher-up. Delia Casanova as Rosa and Isela Vega as Dona Lupe, are excellent.
This is a lesson in Mexican politics! -
quevaal24 April 2022I had high hopes for this film due to the other reviews but I found it to be a bit slow. The protagonist is generally fumbling and sad instead of what I had expected from the reviews: a determined dictator type.
More effective cutting might have helped here to get the movie going.
Great acting though and stylistically it's very well done and pleasing to the eye despite the bleak settings. -
This is truly a great amazing movie, unknown by many because since Hollywood is an industry, check this out, art is now an industry, well, however, this movie is unknown by so many because it isn't in English and is not a Hollywood production, that's why. but can't you people
see the U.S. politics? the politic of war? i'm not defending politics in Mexico, which are terribly corrupt, but, you are talking about it as if Mexico was the only corrupt country in the world. Mr Bush is even worse than any politician depicted in this movie, in fact, he is the worst politician in the world. Truly, we have a very big corruption problem in Mexico, and this movie is so right about it. It should be listed in IMDb's top 250. it isn't there simply because it's not a commercial one. -
Sergio-267 March 2000If you're not from Mexico, you'll have a very hard time trying to follow all the "ironic" and "smart" remarks about the official party that has been ruling Mexico for 70 years.
But if you're Mexican you might as well try to skip this one. It is one dimensional, shallow and senseless profane. -
The best of the new wave of "Cine Mexicano". Forget about the edgy "Y Tu Mamà Tambièn" or the spectacular, impressive "Amores Perros".
"La Ley de Herodes" is more than just a black comedy that spoofs Mexican government and specially judicial system. No, this movie is a clever, witty critic against the system and corrupt bureaucrats.
I think that a well done critic needs to display REAL names and REAL events. "La Ley de Herodes" totally criticizes PRI (the politic party that ruled Mèxico for more than 70 years) and even gives away some true facts.
Damiàn Alcazar is the soul of the movie. The man delivers a solid, fun, dramatic performance. He's a very complete actor and he totally carries on the weight of the movie. Armendariz and the great Casanova also deliver fine performances.
This movie will make you laugh, cringe, but most of all, it will make you think about Mèxico's political situation. Trust me, I've seen the horrors and crap inside bureaucracy and this movie perfectly displays it in such a clever and fun way. The ending will make you realize that even that Mèxico's politicians are a joke, it's the sad, sad true.
A must see! -
linoevgueni16 February 2000I just saw "La Ley de Herodes" last night. I really enjoyed the film. It is a great black comedy. The script by Leñero and Estrada is carefully written. This is the kind of cinema Mexico needs. One of the most amazing things is that they use real names of political parties and that they got away with it.
Great performances by everyone, I think. Marvelous ending! Congratulations to everyone involved in this project! -
Politically inspired `Herod's Law' weaves a familiar story of a mousy junkyard operator making his way up to a powerful position and more importantly, corruption that ultimately follow. Director Luis Estrada commands an ensemble of talented actors and masterfully executes this sharp, tough and funny material. Set in 1949, Damián Alcázar plays Juan Vargas, a newly appointed mayor, promising to bring `modernity and social justice' to San Pedro de los Saguaros, a small but troublesome town. Although Juan Vargas initially has good intentions, he is soon forced to `Herod's Law' a sort of Darwinian way of looking at your peers. D. Alcázar's physical comedy is perfectly pitched and the scenes with Doña Lupe, the brothel madam, are especially funny.
When this film was released in Mexico, it cause so much stirred that the ruling party for 70 years, PRI, was voted out. How many times can we say movies have the power to change a political system? This is 8/10. -
reganbridge28 March 2016Must seeing for anyone wanting to understand Mexican politics. This was recommended by a business associate in Mexico, and, boy, am I glad I watched it. An incredibly noteworthy film for its historical context, and the influence it had on Mexican politics. Also - it's entertaining - hilarious for Mexicans, but hilarious for North Americans.
Actually though some of the themes are Mexican-specific, this has many things that apply to politics around the world. One of my absolute favorite movies. As a (North) American, some of the funniest scenes are with the gringo character. This movie should probably be a must see in many political science classes. -
jobeblanc7 June 2004All the elements are here: bureaucracy, corruption, hypocrisy, ignorance, ambivalence, revolt, arrogance, machismo, and many more combine to make this film so realistic and satirical that it is hilarious.
It is always amazing how often patronage and the perception of power combine to corrupt. 'Herod's Law' really is Latin America at its core. The setting and the veracity of the portrait couldn't be better. As true today as it was in the 1940's, Latin American politics revolve on a wheel of indifference to the norm, of corruption and an incestuous political bureaucracy bred to deceive and obscure. Then you have the periodic explosive reactions to too much tolerance of so little honesty.
Brilliant montage of all the right elements. -
I loved this movie! It is a creative and imaginative way of describing the mexican political life the PRI has brought to Mexico for the past 71 years.
I must see for any Mexican and anyone interested in Mexican politics. -
lavatch24 May 2017"Herod's Law" may be succinctly described as the "smoking pistola." The pistol wielded by the protagonist named Vargas enables his improbable rise to power in a corrupt Mexican system.
Set around the period of 1940s, "Herod's Law" is a vintage satire of small town corruption. It also draws upon Shakespeare's "Macbeth" for a character driven by ambition to gain power and fortune, seizing on every opportunity for kickbacks in his position of mayor of the village.
Egged on by his equally motivated wife, Vargas takes the payoffs from the locals, including a local brothel and the village priest. But he is on a collision course with doom that has been experienced by his equally venal predecessors.
In this wildly satiric and dark comedy, things come to a head for Vargas when his political party falls, and his own wickedness is discovered. The culmination is the image of his crucifixion on the large electrical pole that embodied his slogans of "Modernity" and "Social Justice." But at his darkest moment, Vargas experiences a resurrection, somehow saved by divine intervention. The last we see of Vargas is him recounting a speech in Congress in which he has by now moved up the political ladder and even offers a justification for his bloody deeds.
The film is well-scripted, well-photographed, and well-performed as a lively social satire. The acerbic wit is not merely directed at Mexico, but has a universal resonance where human nature brings out the worst in people. -
valente_cabrera27 March 2002I should say that this movie is one of the most boring I have ever seen. Sadly most of the mexican-weekend-cinema-goers this movie was better than anything. Luckily, the movie helped the mexican cinema, but not because of it's content, any movie from the 80´s (Valentín Trujillo for example) has much more content, cinematography idea, script, than this movie.
If are in the mood for getting surprised or astonished, go and rent movies from the 80's or 70's, "La Ley de Herodes" besides making me feel bored, I also felt ashamed, sleepy and upset because of the money I paid for watching it.
From 10, 5 points. -
Herod's Law translates into "La Ley de Herodes" which is a proverb people say frequently in politics, meaning that you're forced to do something you don't want to, but you have to do it anyways for your own good. I came in expecting something simple and boring, but I was in for a fun Mexican movie about cynicism and politics.
This movie presents mexicans as lazy people and having lived here for most of my life I've become a bit lazy too so I'm just going to copy/paste the IMDb synopsis: Mexico, 1949. The fable of a janitor turned Mayor on a little town lost in the Mexican desert, who gradually realizes how far his new acquainted power and corruption can get him.
Similar to director Luis Estrada's previous work, "El Infierno", expect to see a satiric view on Mexican politics, its pretty hilarious. It's not only what I now recognize as one of the greatest, but also an important film in Mexico for how it helped Mexican people vote for the other political party (PAN) instead of PRI, members of which had all been presidents since 1929.
Here's some other information about it I got off IMDb: The movie release was forbidden for several years. Since filming started, the Mexican government wasn't very happy about it; mainly because it showed a bad image of that administration. Filmmakers fought back. This reached the press so the movie had to be released to avoid rumors about political censorship and released it just before the 2000 presidential elections.
I wish I had it seen it earlier, I now admire it as one of the best Mexican movies ever made. I think its on par with movies like "Casino", not only for its great dark comedy and cinematography, but for its story about people living for themselves and ending up losing it all. It might be hard to find, but I couldn't recommend this and Luis Estrada's more recent work "El Infierno" any more. The acting and cinematography are also amazing.
I'd recommend it to anyone who liked "Goodfellas", "Y Tu Mama Tambien", "Capitalism: A Love Story", "The Big Lebowski", "The Hangover", "Office Space", and "Bad Lieutenant". -
Au-Cinema2 July 2003With the sardonic tone of a political cartoon, Luis Estrada skillfully
presents government the way you know it works: standing on
scandal, bribes, brutality and general treachery. Herod's Law is set
at ground zero of political corruption, Mexico's revolutionary party,
PRI. Herod's Law is an excellent balance of farce and bite. Luis
Estrada frames excellent performances from his cast. Damian
Alcazar provides a superb performance as the hapless, dutiful
member of the PRI thrown into a leadership position and is slowly
infected with power and all the neurosis and paranoia symptomatic of a whetted appetite. The story is excellent, the
narrative arc is well-crafted, and performances outstanding. It is
true, however, that the film fails to introduce anything novel.
However these are all considered trademarks in the political
cartoon business. The film deals solely with established
archetypes, it doesn't introduce new concepts or engage with any
unfamiliar issue. It does little beyond reinforcing stereotypes and
confirming preconceived notions. However, the art of the political
cartoon is the playfulness with which the cartoonist employs these
arch characters. Herod's strength is the playfully exaggerated
treatment of the subject. The posture is almost vaudevillesque in
its rhythm. The tone perfectly describes the whirlwind madness
that envelopes a man as he descends from idealist to practicing
politician.
For more foreign film news, reviews and interviews check out
www.au-cinema.com -
Alfredito8 March 2005This film has a lot of good things: good photography; excellent actors; a good recreation of Mexico in that times (so I've heard); the low-saturated colors are also a pretty detail... Anyway, I think that this topic of corruption could lead to a much better film. I mean, the story could have been a much more real and deep scope on the topic. Actually, the film ends up with a situation where you can easily split things into "good" and "bad" characters "good" and "wrong" actions... However, the intention of the story was another, and it is very well driven. As a comedy, the film is excellent and refined. And also very funny, specially if you speak Spanish.
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DogePelis201518 July 2021It is an excellent Mexican movie; the plot is very good, the political satire is well done and Damián Alcázar's performance is excellent; it is highly recommended.