Connect with us

News

The History of Cinco de Mayo and The Legend of La Llorona

Published

on

It’s May 5th everybody! You know what that means…it’s Cinco de Mayo, and just like St. Patrick’s Day, it’s a celebration of a culture, food, music and heritage. Let celebrate Mexican heritage by talking about one of their biggest and most widespread legends: La Llorona.

But first, let’s dig in a little on the holiday’s history first. Cinco de Mayo isn’t as widely celebrated in Mexico as it is here. Unlike what you might believe, it is not considered to be Mexico’s Independence Day which occurred 50 years before on September 16, 1810.

Cinco de Mayo

(Image credit: cafeconlecherepublicans.com)

Cinco de Mayo celebrates the Mexican defeat over the French on May 5th 1862 during the Battle of Puebla in the Franco-Mexican war. Suffice to say the holiday is more widely celebrated in Puebla, but is celebrated throughout the country. There are parades, festivals and battle recreations.

According to History.com, in the 60’s in America, Chicano activitists pursued the holiday in the states as a celebration of Mexican heritage and the holiday took off. So, celebrate today with more traditional Mexican food like homemade tamales, tacos al pastor and Mexican pastries and learn a little bit about a legendary woman call La Llorona.

The name La Llorona means “The Weeping Woman.” Like most legends, there are many different stories that explain her. The most common of which tells of beautiful Maria, who was married and had two children. As years pass, her husband grows cold and, upon finding out her husband has eyes for another woman, in a fit of rage and revenge she throws the children in the river, drowning them.

After seeing what she has done, she tries to save them. In some stories she drowns and in others she wastes away from grief. Other stories tell of her drowning her children to be with the man she loves and then killing herself when she is rejected.

Whatever the beginning may be, the outcome remains the same. At the heavenly gates, she is denied entry for being without her children and she is sent back to wander until she finds them. The story of La Llorona is used as a warning story to children to keep them from wandering out at night or disobeying their parents.

Cinco de Mayo

(Image credit: popcorntimeforandroid.com)

It’s said that if she even finds a child that looks like one of her children she lost, she will take them away to a watery grave. Stories like that exist all over the world and its similar to the Irish legends of bad faeries that take away children and replace them with their own.

She is sometimes seen wandering along the banks of the Santa Fe river in her white burial dress, wailing and crying out, “Where are my children?” However the story goes, the consequences are equally as devastating. Many movies, good and bad, have been spawned from the legend. One of the most popular being La Leyena de la Llorona.

Cinco de Mayo

(Image credit: remezcla.com)

Universal Studios Orlando even opened up a haunted house just for her.

Cinco de Mayo

(Image credit: youtube.com)

If one day you find yourself in Mexico near the bank of a river, keep an eye out for a white dress, perk up your ears for the cries, and watch yourself near the water. Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

News

Russell Crowe To Star in Another Exorcism Movie & It’s Not a Sequel

Published

on

Maybe it’s because The Exorcist just celebrated its 50th-anniversary last year, or maybe it’s because aging Academy Award-winning actors aren’t too proud to take on obscure roles, but Russell Crowe is visiting the Devil once again in yet another possession film. And it’s not related to his last one, The Pope’s Exorcist.

According to Collider, the film titled The Exorcism was originally going to be released under the name The Georgetown Project. Rights for its North American release were once in the hands of Miramax but then went to Vertical Entertainment. It will release on June 7 in theaters then head over to Shudder for subscribers.

Crowe will also star in this year’s upcoming Kraven the Hunter which is set to drop in theaters on August 30.

As for The Exorcism, Collider provides us with what it’s about:

“The film centers around actor Anthony Miller (Crowe), whose troubles come to the forefront as he shoots a supernatural horror movie. His estranged daughter (Ryan Simpkins) has to figure out whether he’s lapsing into his past addictions, or if something even more horrific is occurring. “

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Continue Reading

Movies

New F-Bomb Laden ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Trailer: Bloody Buddy Movie

Published

on

Deadpool & Wolverine might be the buddy movie of the decade. The two heterodox superheroes are back in the latest trailer for the summer blockbuster, this time with more f-bombs than a gangster film.

‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Movie Trailer

This time the focus is on Wolverine played by Hugh Jackman. The adamantium-infused X-Man is having a bit of a pity party when Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) arrives on the scene who then tries to convince him to team up for selfish reasons. The result is a profanity-filled trailer with a Strange surprise at the end.

Deadpool & Wolverine is one of the most anticipated movies of the year. It comes out on July 26. Here is the latest trailer, and we suggest if you are at work and your space isn’t private, you might want to put in headphones.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Continue Reading

News

Original Blair Witch Cast Ask Lionsgate for Retroactive Residuals in Light of New Film

Published

on

The Blair Witch Project Cast

Jason Blum is planning to reboot The Blair Witch Project for the second time. That’s a fairly large task considering none of the reboots or sequels have managed to capture the magic of the 1999 film that brought found footage into the mainstream.

This idea has not been lost on the original Blair Witch cast, who has recently reached out to Lionsgate to ask for what they feel is fair compensation for their role in the pivotal film. Lionsgate gained access to The Blair Witch Project in 2003 when they purchased Artisan Entertainment.

Blair witch
The Blair Witch Project Cast

However, Artisan Entertainment was an independent studio before its purchase, meaning the actors were not part of SAG-AFTRA. As a result, the cast are not entitled to the same residuals from the project as actors in other major films. The cast doesn’t feel that the studio should be able to continue to profit off of their hard work and likenesses without fair compensation.

Their most recent request asks for “meaningful consultation on any future ‘Blair Witch’ reboot, sequel, prequel, toy, game, ride, escape room, etc., in which one could reasonably assume that Heather, Michael & Josh’s names and/or likenesses will be associated for promotional purposes in the public sphere.”

The blair witch project

At this time, Lionsgate has not offered any comment about this issue.

The full statement made by the cast can be found below.

OUR ASKS OF LIONSGATE (From Heather, Michael & Josh, stars of “The Blair Witch Project”):

1. Retroactive + future residual payments to Heather, Michael and Josh for acting services rendered in the original BWP, equivalent to the sum that would’ve been allotted through SAG-AFTRA, had we had proper union or legal representation when the film was made.

2. Meaningful consultation on any future Blair Witch reboot, sequel, prequel, toy, game, ride, escape room, etc…, in which one could reasonably assume that Heather, Michael & Josh’s names and/or likenesses will be associated for promotional purposes in the public sphere.

Note: Our film has now been rebooted twice, both times were a disappointment from a fan/box office/critical perspective. Neither of these films were made with significant creative input from the original team. As the insiders who created the Blair Witch and have been listening to what fans love & want for 25 years, we’re your single greatest, yet thus-far un-utilized secret-weapon!

3. “The Blair Witch Grant”: A 60k grant (the budget of our original movie), paid out yearly by Lionsgate, to an unknown/aspiring genre filmmaker to assist in making theirfirst feature film. This is a GRANT, not a development fund, hence Lionsgate will not own any of the underlying rights to the project.

A PUBLIC STATEMENT FROM THE DIRECTORS & PRODUCERS OF “THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT”:

As we near the 25th anniversary of The Blair Witch Project, our pride in the storyworld we created and the film we produced is reaffirmed by the recent announcement of a reboot by horror icons Jason Blum and James Wan.

While we, the original filmmakers, respect Lionsgate’s right to monetize the intellectual property as it sees fit, we must highlight the significant contributions of the original cast — Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard, and Mike Williams. As the literal faces of what has become a franchise, their likenesses, voices, and real names are inseparably tied to The Blair Witch Project. Their unique contributions not only defined the film’s authenticity but continue to resonate with audiences around the world.

We celebrate our film’s legacy, and equally, we believe the actors deserve to be celebrated for their enduring association with the franchise.

Sincerely, Eduardo Sanchez, Dan Myrick, Gregg Hale, Robin Cowie, and Michael Monello

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Continue Reading