Just like when Ma and Pa Kettle became such a hit in The Egg And I that it became a movie series, Lupe Velez proved such a hit as the fiery and passionate Mexican singer Carmelita Fuentes that RKO did a whole series of Mexican Spitfire films. Velez who was on the downside of her career, she was no longer an A list player got her career extended a few more years. Sadly only a few years since she died by suicide in 1943.This film which introduces the characters has Donald Woods press agent on a hunt in Mexico for a talented singer of the Latina persuasion for his boss Donald MacBride's radio station. He brings Lupe Velez and finds she's awfully hard to handle. The one she relates best to is Leon Errol who is his uncle. His aunt Elizabeth Risdon who usually played snooty old dowagers is at her snootiest here. Fiance Linda Hayes isn't too thrilled with Velez's presence either.Velez and Errol worked well together and it was both of them that kept the Mexican Spitfire series going. Later on when Errol started playing the dual role of Uncle Matt and Lord Epping he could have spun out on a series of his own.For better or worse this is what Lupe Velez is best remembered for cinematically as opposed to her sex life which was varied and tempestuous.

When I was 9 or 10 I received a book, 'Immortals of the Screen,' which had photos and short bios of some 30 A-list and B-list stars and some major supporting actors from the 1920s through the 1950s. It was apparently done by a former Hollywood crew hand of some sort, picking and choosing either the stars he had actually worked with or those whose royalty fees he could afford to pay. In any case, I dug it out during the past year to see if there were still any actors I didn't know, my knowledge of classic cinema having grown exponentially during the past decade. One who captured my attention was Lupe Velez. It had stills from four or five of her "Mexican Spitfire" movies. I tried finding her on Netflix (usually a good source for older movies and TV shows), but came up empty. Recently I happened to find a four-DVD set on amazon.com with all eight Spitfire movies. This one, of course, is the film that launched the series. I opted to grab it, although I must admit I had some trepidation. I know Ms. Velez wasn't an A-list star and had no idea what level of acting, directing, writing, etc. her films might contain. Just like many movies today are dogs, films from Hollywood's golden age obviously had clinkers, too. I was absolutely delighted today when I watched the brief 71-minute 'The Girl From Mexico.' It is a totally charming little film. Ms. Velez is adorable and also quite enticing as "spitfire" Carmelita Fuentes, sort of a cross between Ricky and Lucy Ricardo. In this film she meets New York ad executive Dennis Lindsay (Donald Woods), who is in Mexico seeking singing talent. He takes her back to NYC, getting much more than he bargained for. She breaks up his impending marriage, nearly gets him fired and gets into all sorts of Lucy-like mischief with Lindsay's eccentric uncle Matt (Leon Errol), whom she quickly wraps around her little finger. In the end, Lindsay's wedding takes place as planned, only with Carmelita as the bride, thus setting up the next seven films. Obviously films' pacing were different in 1939 than they are today. Yet I never found the film to be dragging. It had a handful of laugh-out-loud (at least for me) moments and lots of wholesome cuteness. It was a very enjoyable little film and I look forward to viewing 'The Mexican Spitfire' (its sequel) and the rest of the series.

This is a film which shows that good things come in small packages. A rather short "B" comedy from RKO released in the greatest year that Hollywood had ever seen, "The Girl From Mexico" was the first of 8 films surrounding the hot-tempered yet loving character played by Lupe Velez. Velez had been around Hollywood for over a decade, and was in a career slump when she made this film. It rejuvenated her career, and for the next five years, she made over half a dozen films surrounding Carmelita, the "Girl From Mexico", later known as the "Mexican Spitfire". It was a title that Velez had been given in the early 30's, and now RKO hoped to take advantage of that to give her some much-needed box-office. "The Girl From Mexico" is the first and best of these films, although it was apparent that this was not meant originally to be a series. Well-crafted and fast-moving, the film takes advantage of the chemistry between rubber legged Leon Errol and hot-tempered Velez, and sends them soaring with loads of gags. Sad to say, Velez had more chemistry with Errol than any of the actors in the series who played her husband, Dennis Lindsey.The story finds Dennis (Donald Woods in this outing) going to Mexico to find a singer for a radio show, and meets firecracker Carmelita. He brings her back, and almost immediately, chaos ensues. Carmelita and his Uncle Matt (Errol) hit it off, and head out for a night on the town where she gets publicity by getting into a boxing ring in the middle of the fight. Dennis is not too pleased by the publicity, and Uncle Matt's shrew of a wife, Aunt Della (Elisabeth Risdon) and fioncee (Linda Hayes) have good reason to be suspicious of Dennis's interest in Carmelita. I need say no more of the ensuing events that bring Carmelita and Dennis together by the end, but there are loads and loads of gags, funny lines, and just pure outrageousness. One of the funniest moments comes when Carmelita and Uncle Matt first meet, and begin to sing at the piano; The scene is classic comedy at its finest.As the series continued, the plots got more contrived, dealing with Uncle Matt's constant pretending to be Dennis's boss, Lord Epping. However, for the first few films, the fast-pacing and chemistry between Errol and Velez made the "Mexican Spitfire" series a fun-filled hour or so of pure laughter.

This film, without a doubt, is the best MS film! Lupe Velez is refreshing in this role, and even gets to do some musical numbers (ala' Carmen Meranda).As the series went on, it was reduced to Lupe constantly screaming at her hubby, & Leon Errol lurching around in the (tiresome) "Lord Epping" routine (which often over-shadowed the series). A "Must See" !!! Norm