Leticia Neria PhD thesis - Research@StAndrews:FullText ...

for the way he is dressed. They argue and so, instead of supporting them, the policeman
tries to frustrate their mission. The final time is at the end of the film, when the police
arrive and try to stop a fight in the factory in which Mascalzzone, his henchmen, and
Poncho (among others) are involved. When the police arrive, Don Carlos, the owner of
the factory, blames Poncho and Chona for the melee, and the last scene of the film
shows Poncho and Chona running away from the police. In this final scene, even though
it was not the fault of the police that Poncho and Chona were confused with the
criminals, we still see that the police are portrayed as the enemies of innocent citizens.
This prevents the audience from feeling sympathy for them or constructing a positive
image about them.
Police indolence is even more obvious in Mecánica Nacional. When Eufemio is
leaving the city with his family and friends, the traffic slows to a point where it is
impossible to move in any direction. There are traffic police in the area, but the only
help they give is to say ‘vamos, vamos, adelante, circulen, no se detengan’. 110
Obviously, this absurdity represents the comic moment. As discussed earlier, Eufemio
and some other men decide to close off their own parking area and the policemen there
do nothing to prevent them from committing this abuse.
During the evening Doña Lolita, Eufemio’s mother, becomes very ill after eating
too much. Her fellow campers try to help in different ways, such as suggesting home-
made and herbal remedies, but nothing works. Some try unsuccessfully to get an
ambulance, and finally they leave for the city to bring a doctor. However, they never
requested help from the police, who could have called an ambulance or tried to free the
roads for the family to leave. The police do not try to help, even just to check on the
safety of the campers. When finally in the morning El Apache leaves on his motorcycle
110 Alcoriza, Mecánica Nacional, 1971.
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