The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		4.0

The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz Blu-ray Movie Review

The discreet charm of the bourgeoisie sociopath.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 16, 2022

The following is said with tongue planted firmly in cheek, lest readers misinterpret, but if anyone happens to notice any swine with wings frolicking about in the air, it may be because of the arrival of this release of a rather well regarded if also strangely less than renowned film by Luis Buñuel from the good folks at VCI Entertainment, and even more surprisingly (at least to those with jaded sensibilities), with the video side of things looking rather nice overall (more about that below). The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz follows in the wake of a glut of Mexican films released by VCI, though this is certainly a more notable film from any number of angles than things like Mexican Horror Classics Double Feature, The Aztec Mummy Collection, or some of VCI's other Luchador offerings.

Considering how subtly provocative The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz can be, it's perhaps a little odd that it isn't remembered better in the Buñuel filmography, but that said, the provoking Buñuel does here may not be quite as "in your face" as in some of his later, probably better remembered, efforts, which is not to say there isn't a lot of potentially shocking content in this piece. The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz begins with a vignette documenting Archibaldo as an incredibly spoiled little boy, perhaps whatever the Mexican version of Richie Rich might be, with a doting, over indulgent mother and a no nonsense nanny.

Mom wants to go out for the evening, and so nanny is in charge and little Archibaldo is about to throw an epic sized temper tantrum until Mom agrees to let him play with a valued music box, which becomes an object of obsession for him (more about that in a moment). Mom evidently thinks the nanny has considerable improvisational powers and encourages her to make up the "famous story" about the music box Mom has just told Archibaldo exists, and when the nanny then weaves a fanciful tale of an evil king with a music box that could kill people, little Archibaldo decides he should try it out on the nanny. Unfortunately, at least for the nanny and probably also for Archibaldo considering the psychological effects it all has on him, it's the night of a revolution and the nanny promptly gets shot when she goes to the window to see what all the fuss is about. Thus, the birth of a would be serial killer, who even at this tender age gets a prurient kick out of seeing the corpse of a "victim" with her dress hiked up and her stockinged legs clearly visible.

The story then segues to Archibaldo (Ernesto Alonso) as an adult, and his apparently uncured desires to murder women, though in that regard Archibaldo's attempts kind of play like the flip side of another "foreign" would be serial killer, Monsieur Verdoux, in that fate always seems to intervene and offs his would be victim before Archibaldo can. That gives things a decidedly black comic air, but Buñuel pushes things even further with regard to the potential victims, who are a laundry list of peccadilloes, hypocritical behavior (especially with regard to supposed cherished religious beliefs), and basic naughtiness. That gives the entire film a kind of slightly smarmy feeling, though it still has at least some of the scabrous humor that perhaps defined Buñuel more in the subsequent decades.

For a film that doesn't seem to be that well remembered, The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz has invited some pretty serious analysis through the years, and many folks have compared it rightly or wrongly to Vertigo, at least with regard to its focus on an obsessive man. That said, there's a manifest difference between Kim Novak and a porcelain music box, should that not already be clear. There's also not the structural artifices utilized in the Hitchcock film, but perhaps surprisingly given the subject matter, Buñuel does come close to surrealism at least interstitially at times.

The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of VCI Entertainment and MVD Visual with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.37:1. Interestingly, there's some honest to goodness technical information on this release courtesy of both some "fine print" on the back cover and an actual text card before the actual film, both of which state:

Essay of a Crime is part of the project for the preservation of Mexican Cinema implemented by the National Cinematheque. This film is owned by the Film Production Workers Union (STPC) and has been restored by the institution's Digital Restoration Laboratory.

Image Digitization was performed from the original 35 mm negative acetate. 129,589 frames were restored. The sound was worked from a composite positive copy, using the optical sound negative to fill in the missing audio.

Without wanting to sound overly churlish, the fact that this is perhaps a master that VCI licensed rather than created themselves may account at least in part for the superior video quality here, which is easily among the best looking releases from VCI Entertainment that I've personally reviewed. Just a cursory glance at some of the screenshots I've uploaded to accompany this review will reveal the generally excellent detail levels and consistent contrast throughout this presentation. There are a few minor anomalies, with a generally nicely resolved grain field occasionally looking splotchy (you can see this in some of the screenshots against brighter backgrounds), and with some near macroblocking, but there are so many pluses here I want to emphasize the positives, which are really the bulk of the presentation. VCI is to be commended for this generally great looking release, and I'd love for them to use it as a benchmark going forward for any masters they have done themselves. My score is 4.25.

The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz features a Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono mix in the original Spanish. Things sound decent if not incredible, though longtime readers of my reviews know I definitely prefer to have at least one lossless track on my Blu-ray discs, and my score above reflects that deficit in this particular case. Some of the cues, including a tremolo organ at the outset which may well remind American viewers of old time soap operas, can sound a little brittle, but dialogue comes through without any major issues, despite an overall somewhat boxy sound. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz Video Essay (HD; 26:40) features Dr. David Wilt, who appears to be VCI's new "go to guy" for supplementary analyses. Once again, Wilt is obviously reading from his computer monitor, but delivers an interesting and informative piece, though some of his off the cuff comments like, "Yes, that Evita" when he briefly mentions Mrs. Juan Peron, will probably strike some as being most likely unnecessary. Whoever did the subtitles on this (and commendably there are subtitles for this supplement) might want to have their spellcheck on and/or the cover of the actual release on hand when they work. It's Luis, not Louis, among other oddities.

The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

VCI seems to be carving out a bit of a niche for itself with some of these Mexican productions, and it's notable that this one offers a Main Menu in Spanish (see screenshot 20), which may suggest the label is marketing this largely to Spanish speaking populations. That said, any fan of Luis Buñuel who hasn't seen this will probably want to check this out, and the very good news is for the most part video is great. Lossy audio is a disappointment, but in my estimation not a deal breaker in this instance. The video essay by David Wilt (should I say, "yes, that David Wilt"?) is also a plus. Recommended.