- The Latino Newsletter
- Posts
- We Don't Need a LA BAMBA Remake
To the 669 of you who have already subscribed to The Latino Newsletter, thank you! After publishing two excellent pieces by guest contributors this week, I am sharing a roundup of stories we have been following here, with a few takes from me. If you like what you are reading, consider making a tax-deductible donation to keep this site accessible to the world.
On Monday night, I and others found out about this sacrilegious act:
A remake of “La Bamba,” the iconic 1987 film that was added to the National Film Registry in 2017?
No.
Just no.
How best to explain why I think this is such a bad idea? Permit me to add this thought via a Twitter thread I had with my homie Manuel Aragon:
that i honestly don't know but there has to be some economic reason as to why. i know no piece of art is perfect, but LA BAMBA back in 1987 was ground-breaking for its cultural impact and fight against stereotypes, which were huge back then. why not preserve that history?
— Julio Ricardo Varela (@julito77)
1:03 AM • Aug 27, 2024
I was not the only one who was thinking like this. The talented Susy Exposito broke it down with just one tweet:
Meanwhile, the number of qualified Latine screenwriters I know in this godforsaken industry whose stories are getting ignored.....
— Suzy Exposito (@HexPositive)
10:11 PM • Aug 26, 2024
Then, while I was thinking about how best to react to all this, over at De Los, Cerys Davies did what journalists should be doing this week about this news. Her story went straight to the source, the 84-year-old Luis Valdez, the film’s original director and writer.
“This was not my choice,” Valdez said in the article’s first graf.
He also said this:
“My first question was, ‘Why?’ I think that’s a legitimate question that fans all over the world are going to be asking. I mean the [original] film was a success as far as it goes. It has a lot of fans who are obviously going to react one way or the other.”
The story reveals a lot about why Hollywood still seems broken when it comes to telling stories about our community, so please head over to De Los and give it a read. It’s well worth it.
As for me, I am not buying it. And I also don’t think that just because there is a Latino-led production company behind this, it means we need to instantly endorse the idea. I am perfectly fine and actually content with (wait for it), watching the original any time I like.
So I feel the same way I did when I wrote a 2021 opinion piece for The Washington Post about the “West Side Story” remake.
This remake of “West Side Story,” by revising some of the “mistakes” from back in the day, might win over more skeptics, but it does nothing to elevate Puerto Rican storytellers. Someone like Spielberg has the power to tell new stories instead of recycling a production aimed more at baby boomers than actual Puerto Ricans.
What We’re Reading
Since we haven’t presented this section for the last few days, today’s list is a long one. Here we go (also, let us know if you like this format):
Harris and the New Border Narrative: Hamed Aleaziz is one of our favorite immigration reporters, and his Tuesday analysis for The New York Times about why Kamala Harris is not touting recent Biden administration successes on the border is required reading.
Texas Raids of South Texas Democrats: Over at NBC News, more about the August 20 raids that “targeted Manuel Medina, chair of the Tejano Democrats, several members of the League of United Latin American Citizens, a state House candidate and a local area mayor.”
The Latino Vote at POLITICO Magazine: Adrian Carasquillo wrote a detailed piece about Harris’ Latino voter outreach, featuring some of the top voices in the space.
Project 2025 and Latinos: First reported by Axios Latino, several Democratic-leaning Latino organizations and allies held a Wednesday webinar about Project 2025 and why they feel it would be harmful to Latinos. More is here. Below is the full recording of the press conference.
About the Author
Julio Ricardo Varela is the founder and interim publisher of The Latino Newsletter.
Do you believe in creating new journalism lanes for Latinos and Latinas? Do you believe that U.S. mainstream outlets will never understand our community? Consider donating to The Latino Newsletter. Any little bit helps to keep this newsletter free and accessible to all. ¡Gracias mil!
Reply