FILM REVIEW

Jennifer K Mahal

Call it heresy, but I am not a huge Elvis Presley fan. So when I was

tapped to review “El Rey de Rock and Roll,” a documentary about El Vez,

the “Mexican Elvis,” I winced.

The gaudy pants, the greased hair, the hip action -- yikes! But then

something strange happened. I got hooked. (It didn’t hurt that Lopez and

I both graduated from Chula Vista High School near San Diego.)

The story of Robert Lopez, aka El Vez, was less about worshiping the

golden Memphis god with swivel hips and more about how Lopez turns that

god’s image on its head to help reflect Mexican American culture.

“Sure I change from a sequin outfit into gold lame on stage, but I

also talk about Che Guevara, Zapatistas and United Farm Workers,” Lopez

said.

Given the subject matter, it would have been easy for director

Marjorie Chodorov to do a spoof. But by interviewing college professors

alongside members of Lopez’s family and co-workers, Chodorov has treated

El Vez in a serious light.

It works. This is a film with something to say about Latinos and

popular culture. Just listen to Lopez’s accent change and you’ll

understand what I mean.

* “El Rey de Rock and Roll” will screen 2 p.m. Monday at Edwards

Island 7 Cinemas.