Providing textual analysis of 12 feature films written and directed by filmmakers who explore aspects of the Chicano cultural movement, this book discusses film

The bandido, the harlot, the male buffoon, the female clown, the Latin lover, and the dark lady—these have been the defining, and demeaning, images of Latinos

To date, Chicano and Latino representation and participation in the American film industry have been largely ignored by film scholars. Genre criticism has been