El esqueleto de la señora Morales

I've seen quite a few cheezeball Mexican dramas. This is NOT one of those - it is a fine ensemble performance, with very high technical values. Most of the acting is top-notch. Some great 'Hitchcockian' camera angles and lighting- especially close-ups.

If I were to criticize this film mildly, it's that it views like a stage play. Perhaps it started this way? Anyway, I really enjoyed it thoroughly.

I love films from all over the world and I understand that this makes me kind of weird--particularly here in the United States where most folks have little tolerance for subtitles. Perhaps it's because I have seen and reviewed so many films that I often look for something different--and The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales is certainly different-- and in some very good ways.

In the past, I've written some articles about cheesy Mexican films-- such as the Aztec mummy films and the luchador (masked wrestler) films of the 60s and 70s. These films are pretty bad, but also are wonderful for a good laugh. But this does NOT mean that all Mexican films of yesterday are bad or silly--there are plenty of wonderful older Mexican movies that I've seen and I hope to see many more. For examples, the comedies of Cantinflas are quite charming and Pedro Infante's musicals are quite enjoyable--plus I am always hopeful that readers will write to me to recommend their favorites (hint, hint--PLEASE send me the names of your favorites)!

The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales is an interesting tale because it's one of the few older films I've seen that would seem to endorse murder! Like the wonderful Hollywood film The Suspect (with Charles Laughton), the story is about a nice man who is married to a truly horrible woman. However, Mrs. Morales is unusual in her awfulness because she is two-faced. To her many friends in the local church and her extended family, she is a virtual saint who is forced to live with a terrible husband who drinks too much, abuses her and is irreverent. However, this is all part of Mrs. Morales' sick personality disorder. He is actually a very good husband and tries to love her, but she is both frigid and very cruel towards him--and being married to her is impossible. She wants others to think she's a martyr for staying with such a monster and he just wants a wife who will love him and so he puts up with a lot during their long and very unhappy marriage. All the while, most audience members are hoping that Dr. Morales will either leave this woman or kill her. I was rooting for him to kill her--especially after she smashes the camera he saved up to buy for two years and then convinced her friends that HE beat her! What's next? Well, the word 'skeleton' is in the title...so you might be able to guess SOME of what will happen. However, like all wonderful dark comedies, guessing exactly what will happen is just about impossible! And it features a wonderful twist ending that made me smile.

The bottom line is that while most people are much more likely to watch a recent Hollywood movie, there are wonderful films waiting to be discovered from all over the world. And, in the case of The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales, you don't have to travel that far from Hollywood to find a classic.

Few times has the Mexican movies industry explored this type of comedy. This particular film is surprisingly very well made, specially since its 2 main characters are played by an Actor, Arturo de Cordova, and an Actress, Amparo Rivelles, whose background is in tragic and/or very formal performances. It is a story of a married couple whose life has come to the point of a disaster, basically due to the jealousness of the wife. The Husband a taxidermist announces to their friends that she has gone to another City on vacations, but keeps in his shop an skeleton. This of course is the center plot of the movie and all black humor situations are derived from this. The movie is light and keeps the viewers entertained throughout its entire length.

The taxidermist Dr. Pablo Morales (Arturo de Córdova) is a good man that loves children and animals and to drink a few beers with his three best friends. He has been married for fifteen years with the wicked, frigid, cruel and manipulative self-righteous Gloria Morales (Amparo Rivelles), who has one leg with poliomyelitis, and turns his life into hell on Earth. She lies to the Priest Artemio Familiar (Antonio Bravo) and his nosy and gossipy neighbors and sister and brother-in-law from her congregation, telling them that Dr. Morales is an abusive man that beats her. Indeed, Dr. Morales loved her and has paid the mortgage of his old house where they live to please her and now is saving money to buy a camera that is his dream. When Gloria tries to poison his pet, their servant Meche (Rosenda Monteros), who treats Dr. Morales very nice, does not allow and is fired and expelled by Gloria. She tells her to leave the house immediately, otherwise she will accuse Meche of theft. When the seller reduces her commission to allow Dr. Morales to buy the camera, the object becomes his pride and joy. Soon Gloria breaks his camera into pieces and Dr. Morales kills her. How will he explain the absence of his wife?

"El esqueleto de la señora Morales", a.k.a. "Skeleton of Mrs. Morales", is a Mexican masterpiece of black humor. This film is a must-see for fans of this genre, since it is impossible to describe the cruel treatment of Gloria Morales to her husband. The viewer will certainly hope that he is considered not guilty in the trial. His confession to the nosy priest and the black humor in the end is very funny and unique. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "O Esqueleto da Sra. Morales" ("The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales")

Laced with morbid humour and effortlessly sustaining its macabre wit throughout, The Skeleton of Mrs. Morales is a pitch black comedy horror that's competently crafted, intelligently narrated & brilliantly acted as it takes its time to acquaint us with the taxidermist's charm & persona and also compels us to root for him after he takes his marital woes borne out of his overbearing wife to the extreme. As demented as it is amusing, the story is further enriched by crisp photography & steady pace while it captures the longstanding effects of a toxic marriage and despite turning dark, it never loses its funny side. One of the better examples of its genre(s) and surely amongst the finest works of Mexican cinema. Highly recommended.