The Buried Mirror

Written and hosted by gifted Latin American writer Carlos Fuentes, The Buried Mirror is a massive multicultural undertaking which attempts to present not so much the chronological history of Spain as the legacy of the Spanish peoples upon the world. We watched the first two episodes: "The Virgin And The Bull" and "Conflict Of The Gods." In "The Virgin And The Bull," Fuentes traces the history and explores the meaning of two of the most commonplace symbols in Spanish culture: the virgin Mary and the powerful bull. Visiting the stadium, the camera follows the bloody goings-on between bull and matador in the ring while Fuente's voiceover commentary offers a compelling comparison between the matador and a young aristocrat--the bull being, by extension, the brutally silenced voice of the vox populi. Interesting, as far as it goes, but then the fecund mind of Fuentes is off and running in another direction, and as we struggle to follow his line of reasoning, it suddenly becomes apparent that Fuentes is not using a script. In fact, when he uses such non-words as "inequivocal," it becomes embarrassingly apparent. In the second half of the program, when Fuentes covers the sensual nature of the Madonna as evidenced in the hearty Easter Week celebrations and draws connections with flamenco dancing, he builds one metaphorical image on another in a flurry of excited language until we begin to feel like Wile E. Coyote in a Roadrunner cartoon, flushed with the excitement of the chase (until we look down and realize we're standing on thin air). In "Conflict Of The Gods," Fuentes confidently waltzes back and forth between Mayan, Aztec, and Incan civilizations in various timeframes, while us inexperienced Western hoofers struggle to keep the pace. On the plus side, The Buried Mirror explores new areas in uncommon depth, compared to what one would find in a standard documentary on the subject. Careful listeners and viewers will be greatly rewarded. Too, the visuals are both very well-done and occasionally quite innovative. Had Fuentes worked from a script which posited an unfamiliar Western audience, The Buried Mirror might have been a great achievement; as it is it's merely a good one. Recommended. The three other episodes in the series are: "The Age Of Gold," "The Price Of Freedom," and "Unfinished Business." (Available from: Films Incorporated Video, Education Division, 5547 N. Ravenswood, Chicago, IL 60640; 1-800-323-4222, ext. 43.)