"Holiday in Mexico" is a film that hasn't aged very well. While it might have been seen as a musical with a cute story back in 1946...today it just seems weird and really creepy! After all, the story is about a teenager who seems to be madly in love with her father!
Christine Evans (Jane Powell) is the very precocious daughter of an American diplomat serving in Mexico (Walter Pidgeon). Christine has two passions in life...singing and her father. In fact, her whole life seems to revolve around him...as if, in a way, she's playing the role of her deceased mother! Creepy! And, when her father begins to romance an old flame, Christine seems genuinely jealous of the 'other woman' and vows to teach her father a lesson by chasing after José Iturbi....a noted (and MUCH older) musician! All the while, her idiot friend (Roddy McDowell) seems to come in and out of the story as comic relief.
As you might expect from a Jane Powell film, she does a LOT of singing....and mostly operatic style pieces which would likely be difficult to find an audience for today. This, combined with the creepy Electra Complex, make the story a difficult one to love. Additionally, early in her career, Powell made several very similar films, such as "Luxury Liner" and "Three Daring Daughters". Watchable but hardly one of Powell's best. The only really nice thing about the film is that it was filmed in color.
Christine Evans (Jane Powell) is the very precocious daughter of an American diplomat serving in Mexico (Walter Pidgeon). Christine has two passions in life...singing and her father. In fact, her whole life seems to revolve around him...as if, in a way, she's playing the role of her deceased mother! Creepy! And, when her father begins to romance an old flame, Christine seems genuinely jealous of the 'other woman' and vows to teach her father a lesson by chasing after José Iturbi....a noted (and MUCH older) musician! All the while, her idiot friend (Roddy McDowell) seems to come in and out of the story as comic relief.
As you might expect from a Jane Powell film, she does a LOT of singing....and mostly operatic style pieces which would likely be difficult to find an audience for today. This, combined with the creepy Electra Complex, make the story a difficult one to love. Additionally, early in her career, Powell made several very similar films, such as "Luxury Liner" and "Three Daring Daughters". Watchable but hardly one of Powell's best. The only really nice thing about the film is that it was filmed in color.