Doña Herlinda and Her Son

Doña Herlinda and Her Son, the 1985 film from writer/director Jaime Humberto Hermosillo, is not only a funny, warm gay romantic comedy, it also marks the first time that a Latin American film depicted gay relationships positively. I enjoyed this film a great deal, and recommend it.

The story, and filmmaking style, are both effectively simple. The wealthy widow Doña Herlinda (played with beguiling warmth and slyness by Guadalupe Del Toro) dotes on her somewhat spoiled physician son Rodolfo (Marco Antonio Trevino), who is romantically involved with a younger man, music student Ramón (Arturo Meza).

When Doña Herlinda decides it's time for her son to take a wife – while still keeping his lover – she uses all of her considerable maternal wiles to put an ingenious plan into motion. With her huggable pear-shaped demeanor and butter-wouldn't-melt smile, who would suspect that she is actually a romantic Machiavelli. (Or, if you prefer, a low-key Auntie Mame; she's even been called a Latina Yiddishe mama!) I don't want to give away too many plot points – I found some of them delightfully surprising – but I will say that, by the film's end, Doña Herlinda has brought the greatest possible happiness to the greatest number of people... including herself.

Despite the title, the film is more about "her son" than Doña Herlinda. The opening sequence, in which Rodolfo visits Ramón at his seedy boarding house, is not only sweetly sexy, and believable, it also shows the deep connection between the two men. And although Doña Herlinda is the larger-than-life character, it is Rodolfo and Ramón's love which grounds the film.

Hermosillo excels at including telling – and witty – details of their relationship. Playfully highlighting Rodolfo's immaturity, Hermosillo hangs a huge poster from the action film Mad Max over his bed; and he and Ramón make love inches from a Star Wars action figure (Boba Fett the bounty hunter). In a sublime comic touch, in the next room Doña Herlinda list...