Chiquidracula (1985) is an off-kilter little coming-of-age story directed by Julio Aldama. The film follows ten year old Carlitos (Carlos Espejel) as he struggles to earn a little bit of money to support his family while his grandpa (Adalberto MartÃnez) is in jail and his mother (Ana Luisa Peluffo) is sick. The root of all these problems is the grandfather’s alcoholism which Carlitos decides to cure by spreading a rumor that chiquidracula is killing alcoholics.
The structure of Chiquidracula is generally episodic up until the third act when the vampire plot sort of takes over. Most of the film focuses on Carlitos’ misadventures either with his younger brother or his drunken grandpa. This section of Chiquidracula is driven by a saccharine sentimentality. Aldama really paces the film to revel in the nostalgia for the more idle days of youth.
This nostalgia extends to the history of Mexican cinema as well; specifically in the guise of Cantinflas. Carlitos’ hero worship of Cantinflas figures largely in many of his money-making schemes in addition to the comedian’s appearance as a wax figure at a museum. As the film progresses, Espejel’s performance begins to barrow more and more from Cantinflas only to be accentuated by Aldama’s direction. The two even recreate Cantinflas’ co-conspiratorial breaking of the fourth wall on more than one occasion. It’s an effective homage overall that links the audience to Carlitos via his avid fandom.
Despite the location photography and generally realistic milieu, Chiquidracula is pure fantasy. Little in the film makes all that much sense in terms of logical plotting, preferring instead to embrace emotive spectacles. The fact that so many adults decide to aid Carlitos’ vampire plan and commit fraud in order to help him achieve his goal of literally scaring his grandpa straight is utterly absurd. However, the absurdity of Chiquidracula only makes the film more fun.
What Aldama delivers with his film is the kind of cockeyed family pictures that American studios made in the sixties in order to compete with Disney. Like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) or Zotz! (1962) there are some things in Chiquidracula that may be too thematically adult for kids. But these harsh adult realities are a factor in the lives of children and, in Chiquidracula, these moments are effortlessly balanced with Aldama’s images of fanciful mayhem. Chiquidracula works largely because it is a film that is so genuine in its pro-sobriety message and its compassion for alcoholics that it is virtually impossible to say “no” to the film as text.
