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El Cantante - the movie |
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Written by Administrator
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Tuesday, 11 September 2007 |
Take the positives
El Cantante - The Movie
by Chris Soto
Featured in, and published with the permission of www.lavozmagazine.com
Ok so this post is not intended to argue against the negative feedback
surrounding "El Cantante." The purpose is to inform others that they
can watch the movie and actually take some positive things away from
it. I would hope that people don't JUST listen to the negatives and see
the movie for themselves and formulate their OWN opinions.
 When
was the last time someone saw a great movie and posted something about
it? Not too often... but of course when something 'sucks' everyone has
their opinion.
I totally respect the comments of Willie Colon and Milton Cardona
(posted below) and agree with what they said. But the reality is,
unless Willie Colon or Milton Cardona were producing the movie, they
don't have much say about the content they provided. It is unfortunate
their input wasn't used as much as they (and many others) would have
hoped. In fact! There is another Hector Lavoe movie being produced (for
these reasons) and that is great! People took action on what they
didn't like and they are trying to do Hector a little more justice.
- Did the movie OVER-emphasize Hector Lavoe's Drug Addiction? YES
- Could the movie have highlighted more of Lavoe's positive contributions? YES
- Was the movie inaccurate in some aspects? YES
- Did the movie have a lot of J-Lo? YES
Let's get that out of the way... There were plenty of areas in the movie that needed improvement. Moving on....
 First
is the drug use... I would venture to say that about 80-90% of salsa
fans at most have read a bio or two on hector from somewhere online.
Most bios may have a sentence or two about his drug use and that's it.
That's a good thing because we want to hear about the positives. At the
same time, it leaves the majority not knowing that Hector was heavily
addicted to drugs. When these people see the movie, it comes as a
'shock' that he was "SUCH" a drug addict. Through interviews and
research, many will tell you that what was seen in the movie was in
fact the truth.
So... was it true, yes.... Should they have emphasized it as much, probably not....
Let's think about this for a minute... As soon as word got out that
Marc and J-LO were doing the movie, there was immediate criticism...
Interestingly, I didn't hear about or see a movie from those who
criticized, made about Hector. I am talking about musicians with money
and influence with the potential to make a movie of this magnitude...
Nope no movie from them, but plenty of criticism. Brings us back to
"want something done, do it yourself"... Cliche yes but it's the
reality.
Going back to Marc and J-Lo... who I am not big fans of; but think
about the impact this movie has. An ALMOST ALL latino cast, latino
director, and Latino producers. Wait, let me think back to another
recent movie with the same credits.... hmmmmmm... kinda hard to think
of one....
Is it a negative portrayal of latinos? ABSOLUTELY... I don't disagree
one bit. But ultimately, Hector Lavoe's name as a "SALSA SUPERSTAR"
will be known through anglo suburbs and households. Can't say that was
the case before this movie. In addition, I can't tell you how many
non-spanish speaking supporters of Lavoe loved the translation within
the songs during the movie. A famous quote that I have heard following
the movie "I always sang the lyrics but didn't know what he was saying
or what he was singing about."
 Again,
was is the movie somewhat inaccurate, YES..... BUT.... there was plenty
of accurate information for anyone wanting to learn more about Hector
Lavoe and these individuals should really go see this movie... add it
to everything else you learn from youtube.com and any other
interview/bio you've read. Just more info to keep you better informed.
Aside from the historical and controversial aspects, I thought the
movie looked good. This wasn't a low budget independent film with a
chippy chop editing job. It was quality and I wouldn't expect anything
less than with J-Lo producing it.
So in conclusion... see the movie for yourself. Don't let the negative
feedback disuade you from seeing a decent movie, especially if you are
salsa/Lavoe fan.
Will I buy the DVD? Damm right, cause who knows when the next time a
latino decides to step up and make a movie about one of our great
legends?
Chris Soto
LaVoz Magazine - Executive Editor
http://www.myspace.com/themamboproject
El Cantante (feedback from Willie Colon)
 The Creators of El Cantante missed an opportunity to do something of relevance for our community. The real story was about Hector fighting the obstacles of a non-supportive industry that took advantage of entertainers with his charisma and talent. Instead they did another movie about two Puerto Rican junkies.
The impact of drugs in the entertainment industry is nothing new; look at Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and Whitney Houston today. I think Hector deserves the recognition the movie pretended to give him.
However, as someone who advised the producers, it's painfully obvious that they didn't understand what made him so important. It was the music. It was his talent. They didn't understand or respect the true importance of this music to people around the world.
It's difficult to comprehend how two individuals who are in the music business like Marc and Jennifer are not aware of the damage and the consequences of promoting only the negative side of our Latin music culture.
I was disappointed that there wasn't a minimal effort to correct what I felt were serious chronological and factual errors. Similarly, the wrong story was told in The Capeman with disastrous economic consequences.
After the premier of El Cantante in Puerto Rico there was several statements of protest by people who had supported and participated in the project until they saw it. Their complaints were not about sour grapes or J-lo and Marc bashing but from a sense of betrayal and disappoinment. We are all invested in the world that this movie represents.
For many of us the hope of our story finally being told sank into the horizon with the final version of this film.
Willie A. Colon
My Opinion on El Cantante (Lonny Bramzon)
First of all, this was the story of the man, Hector Lavoe, told from the perspective of his wife, Pucci.
This is not a mean to be a story about the beauty of Latin Culture, nor is it a documentary about Latin Artists coming up in New York. If it was, you would have heard about all of the other Fania artists.
Remember, this movie was about the life, marriage, struggle, and fate of Hector and Pucci.
It is a very personal story about a very personal struggle. . . Salsa was really just the backdrop of this story.
This movie is not an altruistic quest to spread the high moral and cultural standards of salsa?
To me, this music is very important and beautiful. . . to be perfectly honest, though, most people don't really give a sh*t about this music - they are much more interested in a powerful human story that everybody could relate to on some level.
Another point - why are salseros so concerned with an American family in a small town in middle America giving a shit about salsa?
Why should we all be such self righteous salsa missionaries?
These are two phenomenal Latin artists who are spreading their art of film-creation, acting, and music. For them to even conceive this film and bring it to the popular American big screen, is a tremendous tribute to Hector Lavoe.
This movie is powerful, and the cinematography is excellent. You would be a fool to miss this one.
-Lonny
http://www.myspace.com/eldefensor
El Cantante (feedback from Milton Cardona)
 I would like to add my 2 cents to this topic, by saying that the producers were offered information from myself, and others. They blatantly refused it. I had explained to Mr Ichaso, that I kept diaries of every gig I have ever done throughout my entire career.
Everything that Hector ever went through personally and professionally has been documented to the date, time, and place in my diaries. Again it was refused. They didn't want the truth.
They preferred to show the ugliest skeleton he had in his closet. I
did spend at least 3/4 of my entire career with both Willie and Hector.
Milton Cardona
A Counterpoint to "Opinion on El Cantante" - Will Pagan
A Counterpoint to "Opinion on El Cantante" Just a counterpoint to an earlier opinion on El Cantante, if you're interested (I've removed the names of the earlier posters because I don't want them to think this is a public attack on them in the slightest):
If you go to http://www.elcantantemovie.com/ and watch the trailer, you will notice that for the first full minute of the trailer, the entire preview is about Hector Lavoe as the artist. It's about the power and significance of the music. It's about the talent and drive of the artist. It's about Latinos following in the footsteps of the African American musical revolution that was so critical in integrating blacks into mainstream American culture. It was about overcoming adversity to grow a Latino musical movement and record label, i.e. Fania.
When all of these things are used as the initial hook and first half of the trailer, you cannot expect people to be happy that the movie actually has nothing to do with any of those things. The first minute of the trailer is used to sell this movie because those are the things that are most compelling and important to its target audience. It's important to Latinos like myself because it's a story that never gets told with this level of exposure.
Throughout American history, the Latino struggle has been poorly told. With this intro, people began to get their hopes up that someone would tell how a small group of Latinos became more than just "Cantantes..." They became artistic pioneers, civil rights leaders and entrepreneurs. Some might go so far as to say they became revolutionaries.
My family's story, and the stories of many of our families, are tied very closely, culturally speaking, to the story that this movie insinuates it reveals. When I reflect on the American Latino cultural progression, I have to ask myself "What is so different about the opportunity I have been afforded, having been born in 1978, as opposed to my father, who was born in 1958, given that we were both born and raised in the same Housing Project?"
The turning point for so many American Latino families that have climbed out of generations of public housing and poverty were people like Hector Lavoe who drew the spotlight and gave us, and America as a whole, another view of Latinos, i.e. that we could be successful, valuable, powerful people, and that America could love us for what we were. We didn't have to Anglicize (i.e. Whiten) our names, like my uncle did, to be successful. Hector Lavoe's last name may not be his real name, but it represented him culturally from his nickname "La Voz." Latinos didn't have to play in a Motown band or a white rock band to be musicians, and we didn't have to sell out, or pass for something else. We could proudly be Puerto Ricans, and Hector proved that America can love us for it.
Further, you don't need Hector Lavoe's life to tell the story of how drug use puts a strain on families. If you want to see a drug depravity story, go see New Jack City or Sugar Hill. It's like Latinos are only beginning to figure out what Black filmmakers have known for over 10 years already, which is that these movies may provide small scale, temporary opportunity, but it's movies like Crash, Glory and Amistad that truly become classics and advance us as a people.
So, to answer the question of why are we so concerned with what an American family in a small town in middle America thinks about salsa, it's because states like Iowa and Ohio turn elections and determine who leads our country, and thereby, whether we're sending Mexicans back to Mexico, or providing them with opportunities here in America. The perception of Latinos as exposed by the media is indeed important to us at a national level.
To answer the question of why we are all such self righteous salsa missionaries, it's because without something beautiful to show the world, we're just putting another Tony Montana spic role model on screen for everyone to point at and say "Look at these crazy spics. This is why we need a 700 foot wall on the border with Mexico. They come here, and even when they have opportunity, all they do is shoot up, catch AIDS and die."
This is not the story I want told of Hector Lavoe, and by extension, my family, or my people as a whole. We have squandered a wonderful opportunity to show something inspiring. Now, "El Cantante" joins "La Bamba" and "Scarface" as, at best, irrelevant, and at worst, a set back to Latinos everywhere.
And what's worse is that it's not Al Pacino (Italian), or Lou Diamond Phillips (Chinese, Native American, etc.) that's in the leading roles, but two fellow NuYoRican musicians whose families went through the same experiences as mine and should have known better. Best always,
-Will
Review courtesy of LaVoz Magazine - The underground voice of the Salsa/Mambo community.
Thanks to Chris Soto
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