In the Time of the Butterflies

In case you've never heard of Rafael Trujillo, he seized power in the Dominican Republic in a 1930 coup, and ruled the country through terror, torture, and assassination over the next thirty years. "In the Time of the Butterflies" portrays the Mirabal sisters, who sought to overthrow him. The movie did a worthy job looking at their lives, although it could have gone into life under Trujillo's regime a little more. Salma Hayek plays Minerva Mirabal and Edward James Olmos plays Trujillo.

Another interesting thing about Trujillo was that, although the US gladly propped him up for so many years, the CIA ended up assassinating him. You see, Trujillo had - like Manuel Noriega and Saddam Hussein - been using his position to enrich himself rather than the US. So, the CIA assassinated him in 1961. For further information, read "The CIA's Greatest Hits" by Mark Zepezauer.

Three sisters fight the evil Trujillo in this well-mounted mini-epic. Great acting somewhat marred by predictable dialogue, but the story works anyway. The women are gorgeous and sincere. James Olmos plays the three-dimensional lusty Trujillo. Good location photography in Mexico. Could have used more explanation of the politics.

With so much horror loose in this century, we forget some of the recent horrors of the last. Few people who vacation in the Dominican Republic today are aware of the brutal regime which flourished there --- like a poisonous tropical flower --- until recent times. This is a splendid depiction of it and of the struggle to overthrow it. Surprisingly there is no reference to the United States' shameful support of Trujillo or to the Castro revolution in nearby Cuba. I also wonder why it was filmed in Mexico rather than the Dominican Republic itself. But no matter. It is a gripping and thoughtful piece of cinema.

So many things to say about this amazing movie. This has to be one of the saddest movies i have ever watched and the really sad part about it is that this is all true, Rafael Trujillo really existed and he really did most of the things shown in the movie. I think that this movie really brings out how it must have been when he ruled, his power, his fortune and the peoples attitude towards his rule. I would liked to have seen a little more of how badly he treated black people as I myself am a black person. I Think the role of Rafael Trujillo was portrayed well by the actor who played his role, actually I think he brought him out a little too well. After the movie I was left wondering if he was that inhumane.

"Butterflies", the code name for three sisters and underground resistance conspirators in the Dominican Republic during the dictatorial Trujillo regime, bounds through time like a mediocre biopic taking pause at moments obviously designed to evoke emotion rather than infusing a sense of reality. Although an okay shoot technically, the film tries to do too much, doesn't give any real sense of Dominican history, and comes off like a soapy evil dictator vs three babes who even manage to find lip rouge in prison. Melodrama not for realists which attempts to connect the three sibs with Trujillo's assassination by association as opposed to fact. A poor testament to three martyrs.