Zoot Suit (1981)

When barrio leader Henry Reyna and his friends are unjustly convicted on circumstantial evidence, activist lawyers Alice Bloomfield and George Shearer fight the blatant racially motivated miscarriage of justice to win them their freedom.

Director:

Luis Valdez

Writer:

Luis Valdez (play)

Stars:

Daniel Valdez, Edward James Olmos, Charles Aidman

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 2 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Daniel Valdez	...	Henry Reyna
Edward James Olmos	...	El Pachuco
Charles Aidman	...	George Shearer
Tyne Daly	...	Alice Bloomfield
John Anderson	...	Judge F.W. Charles
Abel Franco	...	Enrique
Mike Gomez	...	Joey / Jose Torres
Alma Martinez	...	Lupe (as Alma Rosa Martínez)
Francis X. McCarthy	...	Press (as Frank McCarthy)
Lupe Ontiveros	...	Dolores
Ed Peck	...	Lieutenant Edwards
Robert Phalen	...	District Attorney
Tony Plana	...	Rudy
Rose Portillo	...	Della
Marco Rodríguez	...	Smiley / Ismael Torres

Storyline

A kind of musical accompanying the story of the early 1940's and the effect that the "zoot suit" (a man's suit of long jacket and pegged pants, always worn with a long keychain that looped almost to the ankle.... the rebellious fashion of young men) had on the morals and attitudes of the people of that era.

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Plot Keywords:

hood | national film registry | zoot suit | 1940s | murder | 

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Genres:

Drama | Musical

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Broadway production of "Zoot Suit" opened at the Winter Garden Theater in New York on March 25, 1979 and ran for 41 performances. Charles Aidman, Mike Gomez, Abel Franco, Darlene Bryan, Luis Manuel, Edward James Olmos, Tony Plana, Rose Portillo, Geno Silva, Dennis Stewart, and Socorro Valdez recreated their stage roles in this filmed production. Edward James Olmos was nominated for the 1979 Tony Award (New York City) for Supporting or Features Actor in a Drama for "Zoot Suit" as El Pachuco and recreated his stage role in this filmed production.

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Goofs

Most of the male characters in the film are sporting late 70's-early 80's hairstyles which men didn't wear during World War II.

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Quotes

El Pachuco: The Press distorted the very meaning of the word "Zoot Suit." All it is for you guys is another way to say Mexican

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Crazy Credits

The film opens with the 1940's Universal logo.

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Connections

Referenced in Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004)

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Soundtracks

Vamos a Bailar
Music and Spanish Lyrics by Lalo Guerrero

User Reviews

Perfectly produced film version of stage play.

This film is a work of art. Of the finest quality. I first saw it at the Sunset Theater in downtown Los Angeles over 20 years ago. I was impressed with it then. Now that I have my own copy, I continue to be impressed by the quality of the performances, the screen writing, the sets, the music and dancing, and the feeling. I gave it a "10" which puts me in the same category as the "under 18 age females", OK, I guess I don't mind being in a group with some under 18 age females, sounds pretty good, eh, ese? Kudos for Luis Valdez, Daniel Valdez, Edward James Olmos, Tyne Daly and muchos otros. Great work, can't say enough good things about it.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 January 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

Zoot Suit

Filming Locations:

Prescott, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$63,356, 4 October 1981

Gross USA:

$3,256,082

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,256,082

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1