Here’s today’s dispatch from the crossroads of faith, media and culture.<\/p>\n
Yesterday, this space featured an interview with\u00a0Eduardo Ver\u00e1stegui (Bella<\/em>)\u00a0 in which he spoke about his riveting supporting role as Anacleto Gonz\u00e1lez Flores<\/a> in the historical epic For Greater Glory<\/em> which opens in U.S. theaters next Friday (June 1).\u00a0 The story, as noted, chronicles the events of Mexico\u2019s Cristero War<\/a>, an (unfortunately) nearly-forgotten saga of a people’s rebellion to defend their religious liberty from government overreach. The film’s release seems especially timely given the recent lawsuit against our own federal government by 43 Catholic institutions<\/a> protesting new government requirements that they include contraception in their employee healthcare packages.\u00a0 While the intrusion of Mexico’s Calles regime<\/a> was far more direct in that it actually banned public worship, the issue of government involvement in the affairs of religious institutions is clearly one that remains relevant.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=NKeOHZ9NWao<\/p>\n While Ver\u00e1stegui’s performance as the fascinating brave Catholic pacifist is quite compelling, it’s Andy Garcia’s sturdy portrayal of\u00a0 General Enrique Gorostieta Velarde<\/a>, the agnostic military leader hired by the rebels to manage their resistance, that dominates the film. With a small group of other bloggers, I recently sat down with Garcia to talk about his role in the film. Here are some highlights:<\/p>\n Q: The movie was quite epic in scope. How much of the story had to be cut?<\/strong><\/p>\n Andy Garcia:<\/strong> The first sub-cut I saw was the assembly of the film and that was like four hours long and then I saw three and a half and then I saw three hours.\u00a0 We kept working to get it down. I\u2019ve seen the movie many, many\u00a0 many times. But the first time I saw it \u2013 just the assembly \u2013 I was very pleased with what we had been able to capture — the raw material of the film, how beautiful it was.\u00a0 Especially, I was very proud of…the design elements of the film that were done by the Mexican designers (led by Salvador Parra), the photographer (Eduardo Martinez Solares)…(and) costume designer (Mariestela Fernandez) that was done to actually shoot this movie at these (Mexican) locations…For example, the main Cristero camp, that sort of looked like the Grand Canyon a little bit. To build that camp there — to actually access that valley –it was a 30 minute walk from\u00a0 our trailers…It\u2019s an hour and a half to get to that place just to the camp. We would get in our characters’ wardrobe and then hike in for thirty minutes.\u00a0 Now, it\u2019s easy for me\u00a0 hike in there by myself but they carried cameras and cranes and equipment into that valley and then took it out every night.\u00a0 That crew was making that effort to capture those images. It was like taking a boat over the mountain. So, the effort that was made for this movie was quite extraordinary. It\u2019s something that has to be spoken about.<\/p>\n Q: How did you come to be involved with his project?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Garcia:<\/strong> It was offered to me and then I met the director (Dean Wright) and producer (Pablo Jose Barroso) and we started chatting about its potential and how we saw accomplishing this thing, I was very taken by it \u2013 by the story that I knew nothing about . I called my friends. Mexican-Americans\u00a0 from Mexico didn\u2019t even know anything about it.\u00a0 How is that possible?\u00a0 They said it\u2019s kind of taboo and not really spoken of. I thought, well then it’s got to be spoken of.<\/p>\n It was interesting because we opened the film in Mexico on April 20th<\/sup>.\u00a0 I went down there. (It was promoted as) “the story they didn\u2019t want you to know about” and it opened and it broke records…People now know about the story which is good.\u00a0 It\u2019s important to know about it.<\/p>\n Q: You’ve played many interesting fictional characters in your career. Is it harder playing a historical figure?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Garcia:<\/strong> There\u2019s a responsibility to be as truthful and honest to the character as you can.\u00a0 Sometimes with these historical figures there\u2019s not a lot of information\u00a0 you can go by… In the case of Enrique Gorostieta Velarde there was a book by Jean Meyer<\/a>…It spoke about who he was \u2013 that he was a decorated general, that he was not religious…then (some letters) but that was it…Because this war has been so taboo, it was swept under the rug and so was\u00a0Gorostieta.<\/p>\n He was opposing the government. He fought in the Mexican Revolution and he was highly decorated. (Then) he was fighting against those people . So, he got swept under the rug with everybody else. So now he\u2019s (being resurrected) with people finally understanding a little bit about who he was (and what he did because of the film.<\/p>\n So, you finally get a sense of the character and you have the script and you empower him in the way that you feel he should be empowered for his services. It\u2019s a grand gesture to go in and lead an army for (the people). It takes a man of great courage. Also it\u2019s noble cause because it\u2019s not only religious freedom it\u2019s the cause of absolute freedom — that man should have a right to be religious if he wants to. The government should not be involved in those decisions.<\/p>\n Q:\u00a0 Does your Cuban background play a role in how you view a story involving the fight for freedom<\/strong> <\/strong><\/p>\n Garcia:<\/strong> Yes, of course. \u00a0Freedom was taken away from my family until we landed in America and it was given back to us.\u00a0 So, yes, of course. And, in fact, freedom is still being taken away from the Cuban people. Castro is still there. The same government is in power.\u00a0 There hasn\u2019t been that Cristero War there.<\/p>\n So, yes.\u00a0 It\u2019s not the reason why I made the movie but it certainly suffused my subconscious while I was doing it.<\/p>\n Q:<\/strong><\/strong> So, it gave you a greater appreciation for what the characters were facing?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Garcia:<\/strong> Sure, sure…You know, I had a well to tap into, a parallel story.<\/p>\n Q:<\/strong><\/strong> Has this story had an impact on your personal outlook regarding faith?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Has this project affected you personally in terms of your outlook or faith?<\/p>\n Garcia:<\/strong> No.<\/p>\n Q: How much was cut from the film?<\/strong><\/p>\n Garcia:<\/strong> At least a good hour.<\/p>\n Q:<\/strong> Do you remember what scenes?<\/p>\n Garcia:<\/strong> Oh, yeah. I was there. Sometimes some of those things will come back on the DVD \u2013 not everything but things that could exist as a scene. Some of it is already incorporated into the movie. It\u2019s just patterned or interlaced with something else in a sequence. So, some of it is in the movie. Scenes that are not in the movie that still exist as a whole can be put on a DVD. Maybe they\u2019ll sell the movie as a miniseries where that stuff gets put back in. I don\u2019t know what that plan is. I\u2019m not a producer on the film, although I did work enough on it to be one. But the scenario is usually they put some of it back. The people who release the DVDs want that stuff in it.<\/p>\n