Student Club Shows Latin American Films at TAMIU

Movie buffs who enjoy Latin American films can now look forward to a new series of thought provoking, independent and alternative film showings at Texas A&M International University.

The Club de Español Siglo XXI (Spanish Club of the 21st Century), a chartered student organization, will take viewers through an impressive exploration of Latin American culture, society and thought with a series of five films scheduled for showing through April 17. All showings will be held from 12 noon to 2 p.m. in Bullock Hall 101. The showings are free and open to the public.

The second film in the series is "El coronel no tiene quien le escriba" and is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 26. Based on a novel by Gabriel García Márquez and directed by Arturo Ripstein, it is a story about a colonel who waits for his promised pension letter. Everyone knows the letter will not come, but the protagonist continues the ritual of going to look for the correspondence that will never arrive. The film is not rated.

The third film is "La ley de Herodes" and is scheduled for Tuesday, March 5. Directed by Luis Estrada, it is set in 1949 Mexico and tells the tale of a janitor turned mayor in a little, desert town in Mexico. The mayor realizes how far corruption and his new power can take him. The film is not rated.

Another film, "De amor y de sombras," is scheduled for Tuesday, March 19. Directed by Betty Kaplan, it is a thriller about the underground that tries to help prisoners captured during the dictatorship under Augusto Pinochet in Chile. Francisco (played by Antonio Banderas) and his brother, José (played by Diego Wallruff) pretend to be priests and visit with the prisoners of the government. The film is based on a book by Isabel Allende and is not rated.

The fourth film, "La ciudad y los perros," is scheduled for Tuesday, April 2, and is about four angry cadets who form an inner circle to beat the system and ward off he boredom and confinement of the military academy. They set off a chain of events that begin with theft and end in murder. The film is directed by Francisco J. Lombardi and is not rated.

The last film, "Santitos," is scheduled for Wednesday, April 17. It begins with St. Jude appearing in Esperanza's oven, after which she decides to find her daughter, who died under mysterious circumstances. The film is full of humor, sorrow, quirky characters and bizarre situations. The film is directed by Alejandro Springall and is not rated.

For further information, please contact Dr. José Cardona-López, faculty advisor for the Club de Español Siglo XXI, at 326-2690 or e-mail cardona@tamiu.edu. University office hours are 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Journalists who need additional information or help with media requests and interviews should contact the Office of Public Affairs and Information Services at pais@tamiu.edu