The Girl from Monterrey (1943) User Reviews

"You Make Him Fall Down"!!!

[kidboots · 5/10 · 20 October 2010]

Armida was a vivacious Mexican dancer who came to Hollywood in the initial sound period. Even though 1930 was her most productive year with 4 films (she even co-starred with John Barrymore in "General Crack") she proved no threat to resident "hot cha" Lupe Velez and didn't make another movie until 1934. She came into her own in the late 30s with Hollywood's "Good Neighbour" policy and was sometimes the only reason to watch some pretty dreary movies. Looking at her personality in "The Girl From Monterrey" and "Fiesta" it is difficult to understand why her career didn't take off in those early years. She was just as peppy and talented as Lupe!!!

I don't know what movie the "official" reviewer was watching but this is definitely not a thriller - it is more of a boxing/comedy/ drama with musical highlights and Armida shares top billing with Edgar Kennedy. Lita Valdez's brother, "Baby" (Anthony Caruso), visits her backstage to repay the money she has sent him, to keep him at law school - he is now earning money as a boxer. While there, encouraged by Lita's cries of "Make him fall down"!! he knocks down a couple of men who have insulted her and is instantly noticed by a fight promoter (Edgar Kennedy). "Baby" is a great success in the ring, all due to Lita's encouragement and zany training methods which include boxing/dancing and riding on a motor scooter.

When Lita (Armida) finds a singing job, femme fatale Flo (Veda Ann Borg) moves in on "Baby" - she has been hired by Al Johnson (Jack LaRue of course) to romance the boxer so when he is scheduled to fight Jerry (Lita's sweetheart) he will lose due to "living it up". Meanwhile Lita is heartbroken when she realises that the two men she loves are due to meet in the ring. She also smells a rat - namely Flo, and after going to Flo's apartment and threatening to "Make her fall down", Flo confesses her part in the plot. Flo then repents and starts to give "Baby" the confidence he needs to win but Lita, who thinks Jerry is in on the plot, refuses to speak to him.

Armida sings a couple of songs - "Jive, Brother, Jive" and "The Girl From Monterrey" but apart from "B" stalwarts Jack LaRue and Veda Ann Borg, she is the only reason to watch this very poverty row film.

She tries to spit fire but it comes out as bubbles.

[mark.waltz · 5/10 · 6 November 2014]

Armida, the Mexican "Cher", is Lita Valdez, a little wisp of a young lady who uses her much bigger baby brother Anthony Caruso to knock down the people who stand in her way, although she's not reluctant to use her own fists if it will get her the attention she thinks she deserves. She's the type of character you think at first you won't be able to stand dominating an entire movie, and for much of her time on screen, that is true. But when she fights for her prize fighter brother and the champion prizefighter Caucasian man she loves (Terry Frost) not to duke it out for the championship, you see that she does have some sense. She compares their friendship to being as close as "Damon and Runyeon", and when she discovers that baby brother's tough blonde girlfriend Veda Ann Borg has become involved in an effort to get Caruso to throw the fight, she isn't above attacking her as well. This is a spitfire of a little comedy that is over almost as fast as it began, and that is certainly welcome.

Other favorites such as Edgar Kennedy, Jack La Rue and Jay Silverheels are also seen in this film, with Kennedy a very fussy manager who tries to prevent the very crass visitors to his office from using his plant as a cigar ashtray. Armida gets a chance to sing a bit too, shocking everybody with her showy soprano voice. Even a song with a mule turns out to be amusing. While many people believe that the Mexican senorita rivalry was between the soft-spoken Dolores Del Rio and the queen of the "Mexican Spitfire", Lupe Velez, it's actually between Armida and Velez, and even though both of them dominated mostly low budget movies, it was Velez who won that bout. She's a tiger cat, while Armida in the end of this is more of a highly caffeinated kitten.

Not to be mistaken for "Rocky" or "Raging Bull"!

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 12 October 2012]

I would love to sit down with a group of Mexican-Americans to see this film. That's because Armida's dialog and acting seem right from the Frito Bandito school of acting and I'd love to watch the reactions on this audience in order to see them looking on in horror! Yes, her acting is THAT silly. However, despite being a second-rate Lupe Valez wannabee, her shtick was also quite entertaining. Bad, but entertaining.

The film begins with Lita (Armida) singing in a Mexican night club. Soon, her brother (Antonio Caruso) arrives from America and announces he's a prize fighter. She is at first furious (and she is through MOST of the movie) but then relents when she sees he has no trouble 'knocking peeeple down', as she puts it. They both come to America together where they find it relatively easy moving up in the boxing rankings--mostly because EVERYONE you see fight other than Caruso appears to be LESS talented in boxing than either Wally Cox or Billy Barty! In fact, I have never seen a boxing film with such horrible boxers in all my life and Armida would have probably been more convincing in the ring. Oddly, of all the no-talent 'fighters', the worst clearly was Jerry (Terry Frost)--who is supposed to be the champion!! Eventually, the brother, 'Okay Baby' Valez is going to meet the Champ in the ring--which is a problem as Lita is now head-over-heels for Jerry and she can't stand to see either of them lose. Throw into this mix a BAD girl (Veda Ann Borg) and you've got the makings of a clichéd and often very silly film. However, despite being bad, it also is oddly likable. I don't really know why, but the film did keep my interest to the end and so it couldn't be 100% bad! By the way, although Caruso got rather low billing, he was one of the stars in the film. Also, you might recognize him as 'Bela Oxmyx' from the "A Piece of the Action"--one of the funnier episodes of the original "Star Trek" series. Also, fans of Laurel & Hardy would also be happy to know that Edgar Kennedy is in the film, and he's pretty good in his role as a boxing promoter.