The story of two women, a mother and her daughter, who during the Cristero War set traps for government soldiers passing by their house, using seduction that was never consummated. The idea was to deceive the soldiers by making them feel safe, then hand them over, almost with their hands tied, to the Cristero guerrillas. But then one of the women, the daughter, truly falls in love with one of the soldiers, allows herself to be seduced by him, and then tries to save him, only to be killed, in the circumstances, by the soldier himself.
Acting
Katy Jurado's final career peak—icy, devastating, unforgettable.
Direction
Ripstein's claustrophobic staging turns the house into a trap.
Cinematography
Shadows that swallow desire whole.
Director
Arturo Ripstein
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Viridiana Alatriste, daughter of legendary actress Silvia Pinal, died in a car accident just four years later—this and her mother's 'Viridiana' are her only starring roles.
The Cristero War (1926-29) was Mexico's church-state bloodbath that killed 90,000—Ripstein uses domestic eroticism to expose how revolution devours the intimate.
MX
