This year, for National Hispanic Heritage Month, I’d like to take some time here on The Bruja Professor to talk about the importance of BIPOC Joy.
In all of my classes and all of my online conversations about romantic comedies, and the romance genre more broadly, we inevitably circle around an important question: Who gets to be centered in stories of joy? Who gets to have an HEA?
As we push for more inclusive narratives and genuine ones—none of those obligatory “progressive” stories here, thank you or you will be hexed!—we have to celebrate the importance of these uplifting stories for those of us with historically marginalized identities. That is, for those of us used to being the subject of trauma porn, it’s a big deal to read stories that focus on our joy, empowerment, and PLEASURE.
As several students put it when we focused more on BIPOC and queer joy during my romantic comedy course one term: They were in THE BEST MOOD those weeks. Why? Not because college life suddenly stopped being stressful or everything suddenly fell into place, but because they consumed stories that reminded them their lives were about more than oppression and suffering. They could also be about success, affluence, happiness…and all the romcom tropes that we love.
And that feeling—that hope, that joy—is a real kind of magic.
Life is a Dream
It’s certainly one I greedily gobbled up the first time I watched the little-known film Sueño (2005) and the reason why I teach it in my romantic comedy course today. While this film isn’t a traditional romantic comedy, it does fall under the rom-com umbrella if we look at the broader definition of the genre: It is a lighthearted, uplifting film that wouldn’t hold up (at least to my mind) without the romantic plots, even if it isn’t always laugh-out-loud funny.
The movie is about Antonio (John Leguizamo) and his journey from Mexico to Los Angeles to fulfill his dream of being a musician. His opportunity comes when a radio station sponsors a contest and he meets Mirabela (Elizabeth Peña), a down-and-out singer and single mom, trying to find her magic again after being dumped by her musician husband. Together, they put together a band that celebrates the classic tunes that shaped their love of music. As this unfolds, Antonio also courts Nina, a young woman torn between fulfilling her own dreams and caring for family.
What unfolds is a joyful story about what it means to be human. What it means to lose your spark and find it again. What it means to find the balance between being there for family and nourishing your own passions. What it means to find your place in a world that doesn’t always have your best interest in mind. And, most importantly, this movie is about brown joy, something I had rarely ever seen depicted in media before.
In fact, I don’t think it’s a leap to say that this film was a novel experience for me in its depiction of brown joy and, while the ending is open, the one thing that is definitive is that everyone gets an HEA.
A Note on Cultural and Racial Identity
I loved seeing BIPOC characters living their best lives and figuring stuff out, especially when they are brown like me. That said, since those of us in the Hispanic, Latine, and mestizaje communities are so often treated as a monolith, I feel like it’s important to first point out our differences before I continue to swoon over this movie.
Antonio is Mexican and he comes to the United States to fulfill his dreams of becoming a musician. As someone who newly immigrated to the US, he soon realizes the “American Dream” is not what he thought it was as he struggles to find meaningful work and develop a life here. In many ways, the story is about him trying to keep a hold of his dreams and the magic that inspired him to come here, while negotiating the unromantic realities of daily life.
Antonio’s experiences are very different from mine. I’m a native New Mexican mestiza (my family on both sides have been in New Mexico for centuries). I come from a higher socio-economic background. My Spanish ranges from mediocre to adequate. So I’ve never had to grapple with many of the issues he does in the film. I stress this, because, again, we are not a monolith!
Still, it doesn’t change the fact that I love seeing stories that feature brown people magic and brown people joy, even if their experiences don’t completely mirror my own. And this movie continues to stand out to me in the recent push for more inclusive romantic narratives. While there are more Latine romantic comedies out there, many of them feel like they cater to a whiter audience. This film, in contrast, feels so deeply at home in its Latine roots, pushing back against the kind of stories our communities are allowed to tell about ourselves.
Here are a few other reasons this film is so delightful (some spoilers ahead)…
Antonio is One of the Original Cinnamon Roll Heroes
Antonio was my first experience with a cinnamon roll hero before I even knew the term cinnamon roll, which, for the record, refers to a romance hero who is gooey sweet, just like a…cinnamon roll. He’s kind, sensitive, and self-aware.
He doesn’t feel the need to be macho to prove how manly he is, nor does he put his desires at the expense of his friends or his romantic interest. He can express his feelings, isn’t afraid to talk through things, and is sensitive to what others are going through. This, in case you didn’t realize it, is a BIG DEAL in how Hispanic and Latine men are often depicted in media. I see a lot of kind Latine men like Antonio in real life but seldom depicted in stories.
When it comes to romance, he is assertive but also sensitive, putting friendship with Nina over a budding romance when her life gets complicated. Better still, he doesn’t deny that they have more than friendly feelings for one another or use their friendship to push for more. He’s not, in other words, the creeper nice guy hanging around the heroine until she finally sees him as a romantic partner—and is resentful when she doesn’t. Instead, he recognizes that what she needs right now is a friend who can understand what she’s going through with her family. So that’s what he gives her.
Swoon.
Women Supporting Women
Mirabela (Elizabeth Peña) is a gifted singer and single mom trying to get her spark back after being abandoned by her performer ex. She’s older. She’s been through stuff and been dealt some hard blows in life. When Antonio breezes into her life, she begins to open herself to life again. She also wonders if this younger man is into her. She is not used to being around genuinely kind men, so she can’t tell if his behavior is because he not only admires her but also desires her.
As she grapples with what their relationship might be—A romance? A musical partnership?—she meets Nina, the younger woman Antonio is truly romantically interested in. Instead of devolving into a petty plot of two women fighting over a man, Mirabela and Nina become friends and confidants. Nina admits she admires Mirabela’s curves and life experience. Mirabela compliments the younger woman’s own figure and gives Nina romantic advice about Antonio.
It’s a beautiful, poignant development as Mirabela realizes she’s confused her new zest for life with romantic feelings for Antonio. Instead of making an issue of it, she appreciates her relationships for what they are and, with wisdom that only comes with age, acknowledges that she’s had to figure out healthy relationship boundaries after her messy breakup. Nina, too, realizes she can both care for her family and develop her own life, including romance, outside of it.
Mirabela’s story is at its sweetest when she learns to appreciate herself outside of a romantic relationship and reclaims her voice—literally as a singer and metaphorically as a woman. And, since this is a romance, after all, she discovers that love was right under her nose all along, in the form of the band manager, who, we suspect, has quietly pined for her for some time. Her story shows that life doesn’t stop at a certain age, and neither does romance.
Not So Big Misunderstandings
The most delightful part of this film is that it doesn’t rely on Big Misunderstandings, or issues that could easily be resolved with a conversation, to drive the plot. In fact, Antonio and his friends talk through things.
For example, when his band thinks Antonio is signing a solo record deal after a series of miscommunications via the rumor mill, they…talk to him about it. What’s more, they say they support him but are hurt because he did it behind their back. They want him to succeed, even if he has to go his own way. They just wanted to be told up front that that’s what is happening.
Antonio, in turn, quickly explains that while he met with an agent, he actually turned down the deal because he is committed to his band and the music they create together. The whole scene is less than a few minutes and clears up an issue that would be a 30-minute drama fest in another movie.
If you get people who talk through their issues, are emotionally mature, and are committed to bringing out the best in one another, you might wonder where the conflict comes in. Simple: All the drama in this story comes from being human.
Nina’s struggle to be both there for her family and develop her life is real. Mirabela recovering from a toxic relationship and finding her feet again is real. Antonio’s dream is real, as are all the bumps in the road he’s gone through to get there. The story feels all the sweeter for leaning into our daily struggles and desires for more than just getting through life, not manufactured conflicts necessary.
Magical Realism
Lastly, this movie is infused with magical realism in a way that shows everyday magic as a lived experience, not as a fantasy. When you are spiritually inclined and a little witchy, your life reads like a magical realism story, or as we like to call it, REALISM. This is especially true for those of us in Hispanic, Latine, and mestizaje communities, where the spirit realms are closer to us than many realize, and unexpected enchantments are a part of our daily lives.
Mirabela has her fortune read by a friend which promises true love. It is what propels her into a friendship with Antonio and, later, love…just not with him. Her fortune comes true, yes, but not in the way she expected. For anyone who has ever had their cards read or even consulted their horoscope, this feels so laughably accurate. The cards and the stars never lie, but things never play out like you think they will.
Antonio sees life as a waking dream, as many of us do, and, as a result, can imagine a better world for himself. He imagines passionate dance sequences with Nina when they can’t be together, a sultry reminder that, while their friendship comes first, there’s no denying their passion for one another. Mirabela, too, gets her dreamy dance sequence as she considers what a romance with Antonio might look like…and realizes, as her fantasy devolves into a hostile dance, that she doesn’t want to recreate what she had with her ex with her new bandmate, even if he were interested.
Even the ending is something like a dream, leaving the viewer to wonder if they won the contest and got the record deal. Maybe they did. Maybe the end is just another part of the sueño of life. But guess what?
IT DOESN’T MATTER.
Because they have everything else they need: They have friendship. They have love. They have music. They have romance. And they have the magic of life.
See why I love this movie so much?
The Bruja Professor, a witchy take on literature, the occult & pop culture, is the scholarly sister to Enchantment Learning & Living, an inspirational blog celebrating life’s simple pleasures, everyday mysticism, and delectable recipes that are guaranteed to stir the kitchen witch in you.
If you enjoyed what you just read and believe that stories are magic & true magic is in the everyday…or your next good read, subscribe to my newsletter below for regular doses of enchantment.
Want even more inspiration? Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Here’s to a magical life!
