The Beginning and the End
Principio y fin
1993
Synopsis
Beset by a sudden misfortune, the well-to-do Botero family scrambles for financial security. Ignacia, the coolheaded matriarch, places all her hopes on her favorite son, Gabriel, and his university education. Forced to sacrifice their own futures, the rest of the children pay the ultimate price.
Editorial
Adapted from a 1940s novel by Nobel Prize–winning author Naguib Mahfouz, Arturo Ripstein’s unsung masterpiece artfully transports an Egyptian classic to 1990s Mexico. Unfolding across ornate yet claustrophobic interiors, this torrid family saga tackles wealth inequality by way of melodrama.
