Eugenio Derbez wants to show a different Mexico in “Radical”. (Photo by Corey Nickols/Getty Images for IMDb)
Whatever you do, your film work will be closely watched. Eugenio Derbez moves between extremes. On the one hand, he generates sympathy among a broad audience who like to see him as a comedian or playwright and show him this sign of trust at the box office. On the other hand, many critics of his work still do not give him the benefit of the doubt and despise him for carrying out projects that they do not find pleasant or that they consider to be inferior. Meanwhile, he sticks to his goal of engaging in proposals outside of comedy. Just like he does in Radical.
Its purpose in exploring storylines away from humor has to do with the intention of showing a different side of Mexicans. Likewise, he wants national talent to be able to play roles that do not conform to the stereotypes that characterize Mexican artists internationally today. Part of this goal is to get involved Projects that aim to make visible a Mexico different from what the news shows every day inside and outside the country, understand a violent country that is identified with the image of drug trafficking.
He made this known during the press conference for the premiere of Radical in Mexico City: “It became an interesting story for me, and it’s the kind of stories I want to tell. I’m tired of seeing violence in the news, and bad news.” News about Mexico, then suddenly I was offered a film that talks well about Mexico, and I accepted it seemed very interesting to me.
Derbez made it clear that he doesn’t like that Mexicans and Latino actors in general in Hollywood are considered “criminals” in their novels. That is why he believes that it is necessary to give a twist to this stigma through the development of characters that emerge from the pleasant anecdotes that also arise in social reality.
“Now that I have the opportunity to work outside of Mexico, I have made it my goal to change as much as possible the image that Latinos are portrayed in Hollywood films. You know, they always give us the role of a gang member.” “.
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He agreed to pose as teacher Sergio Juárez Correa after reading Wired magazine’s report on what he accomplished with students at the José Urbina López School in Matamoros, Tamaulipas. He was drawn to it as a sign of self-improvement and motivation, qualities he personally values. It’s your line. In this sense, He stressed that he is not attracted to projects that aim to criticize or question someone else, such as government cases. On the contrary: based on your vision, your attention will be drawn to what should be valued and to those who make it possible.
“Awaken curiosity in them.”
Sergio Juárez Correa, the teacher portrayed by Eugenio Derbez in “Radical,” was present at the press conference. pic.twitter.com/upCtFYKEAP
— Elías Leonardo Salazar (@DonEliasSalazar) October 10, 2023
“My path has to be this: make films in which we talk. I’ve already done my homework.” I think I can do more by saying, “There’s a problem here, I’m pointing it out, and there are two people who are proven to be changing the country without resources.” I think I can achieve more from my trench than if I plunged into something I don’t know so much about,” commented Derbez when asked if he ever plans to use his voice in the role of politician to expand.
Clarifying that Radical is not pointing the finger at anyone specifically due to the educational backlog in the country and the insistence on maintaining a curriculum that focuses more on the discipline of a system than on learning, Derbez called for a rethink of school models and methods on the basis of which the results.
“We’re not pointing the finger at anyone. The film never had a political stance. We don’t want that. We didn’t want to point it out, we didn’t want to blame it. On the contrary. We wanted to focus on the inspiring story of a Mexican who, with ingenuity, without resources and in the face of an adverse panorama, achieved the incredible.”
He raised the issue of bans on “not running”, “not shouting”, “raising your hand” and more as tools that limit children’s abilities. In contrast, advocated that they be brought closer to learning through formulas that produce results, like the one that Sergio Juárez Correa used with his students at the José Urbina López School.
He clarified that the film does not feature anyone and is not an exclusive topic for Mexico: “It is not a local problem.” This is happening all over Latin America. It happens in Africa, it happens in India. I was in Washington just two weeks ago talking to members of Congress, and they presented me with some numbers that I hadn’t imagined. I didn’t know the United States had this problem. “There are a lot of changes that need to be made, I want a conversation to start.”
With the aim of contributing to two changes that he considers acceptable (Mexico’s image abroad and education), Eugenio Derbez presents radical a week before the cinema release, This is October 19th. He does this with the clarification that he doesn’t mind being a box office phenomenon, although he doesn’t mind people coming to the cinema to see it, as it has a positive influence on his ideal of storytelling as the Messages does not send.