Cantinflas is a man who hangs around the studios and helps anyone who needs his advice while at the same time envisioning his own versions of how certain scenes should be shot. Both angles provide ample opportunities for very witty, subtle barbs at the foibles of the industry.
Acting
Cantinflas at peak chaos—physically comedy genius with razor-sharp timing.
Writing
Script bites the hand that feeds it, savagely.
Direction
Delgado lets Cantinflas run wild while keeping the satire sharp.

Director
Miguel M. Delgado
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Cantinflas was Mexico's biggest export to Hollywood—this film bites back at that relationship.
The 'extra' as protagonist was radical for 1962; it prefigures Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood by decades.