From Prada to Nada: the Capitalism within Ethnicity in America (Hermeneutics Analysis)

Abstract

From Prada to Nada (2011) is a movie by Oddlot Entertainment, Gilbert Films, Lionsgate, and Televisa Hyperion Films. This is a twentieth century of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility novel. This movie tells about two rich siblings who live in Beverly Hills, Nora and Mary. Their live changed when their father died because of the bankruptcy. They need to move from their Beverly Hills mansion to their aunt’s house in East Los Angeles. Along with this condition they find their lovers.

Those are the movie ‘about’, the low level of interpretation of the meaning-making. Meanwhile, every movie always has a ‘message’ in a certain elements. It’s called the deeper level of interpretation. Dealing with the hermeneutics analysis, we can find that this movie consist of signs or symbols which are able to be identified. From Prada to Nada is not merely a drama movie, but a reflection of ethnicity – this movie; for instance, raise the Mexican-American – in America dealing with the capitalism system.

Keywords: Capitalism, Ethnicity, Hermeneutics analysis

Well, From Prada to Nada is a movie that reflects the twentieth century or nowadays ethnicity condition in America, especially the Mexican-American. The main characters, Nora and Mary are daughters of Mexican. But they live as Americans and both of them don’t even know what their culture heritage, for instance they can’t speak Spanish. It happens when they move to their aunt’s house in East Los Angeles. They can’t understand what others speak because they never speak Spanish. They both think that they are Americans, that’s why they never learn their ancestor’s language. Besides, they feel as strangers among their Mexican family. Another term used here is capitalism. Why? Because in this movie we can find some conditions reflected as they are the victims of capitalism, dealing with their Mexican-blood, and making them deny their status as Mexican. Therefore, for discussing it, we can’t just ‘watch’ it, but we need to analyze it using hermeneutics.

Dealing with hermeneutics, first, we need to understand what this movie ‘about’, means the plot story, as we call it the low level of interpretation or the ‘meaning-making’[1]. Then after that we are going to take a risk to ‘translate’ the ‘message’ in this movie, or the deeper level of interpretation[2]. Then it will be easier for us conquer the ‘message’ and understand the signs shown in this movie: capitalism and ethnicity.

First, I will elaborate the plot of this movie. What this movie ‘about’. As I explained before that this movie is a story of Nora (Camilla Belle), a Law student and Mary (Alexa Vega), an English Literature student whose father is Mexican. Then he dies. And after that they move from their Beverly Hills mansion to their aunt’s house in East Los Angeles or East L.A. In between those incidents, they find out that they have an older brother, Gabe Jr. (Pablo Cruz), as the result of their father’s affair before marrying their mother. He comes to their father funeral, brings his wife, Olivia (April Bowlby) and causes chaos in Nora and Mary’s house. Actually, their father is in bankruptcy, and he has nothing left, except the huge amount of debt. Then, their brother – with Olivia of course – buy their house. At that time, Nora meets Edward (Nicholas D'Agosto), Olivia’s brother who is an attorney. Because Nora and Mary don’t fit well with Olivia, they choose to leave their house, and go to East Los Angeles, where their aunt (Adriana Barraza) lives along with the Mexicans, and her neighbor, Bruno (Wilmer Valderrama). Nora chooses to out from her study, and finds a job. On the other hand, Mary will continue her study. Nora gets a job in Edward’s Law firm. Meanwhile, Mary finds an interesting guy, her own lecturer assistant, Rodrigo (Kuno Becker), and dates him. Nora does a great job by winning a law case of Mexican labor. On the other side, Mary is busy dating the handsome lecturer and lying about their economic condition. Later on, Nora falls in love with Edward, but she tries to deny it because she has an obsession to be a success lawyer and doesn’t want love disturbing her plans, thus she rejects Edward’s proposal; and Mary finds out that Rodrigo is lying to her too, that he actually has a wife. The climax is when Nora gets the invitation of Edward’s engagement where at that time Mary finds the real Rodrigo. She gets in a car accident. In the end, Mary dates Bruno. While Edward backs to Nora, and marries her.

Those are the plot of this movie that what we try to reveal the movie ‘about’. The next is the deeper level, about the ‘message’. We are going to analyze the signs and symbols of this movie. For instance, like the Beverly Hills, East Los Angeles, and even probably the back sound. At the first scene of this movie, we find the back sound is California Girls by Katy Perry, telling us the main characters’ status, along with the portrayal of the setting of place, Beverly Hills. Beverly Hills is not merely a name of place. But it can describe the social status of the owner of the mansions there, like Nora and Mary. Beverly Hills here also can be meant as capitalism itself. And East Los Angeles can be described as the sample of ethnicity – Mexican – condition.

Capitalism according to Neoclassical and Keynesian economists take as their object a system that is variously referred to as the “market economy” (in which individuals and private firms make decisions about consumption and production in decentralized markets), a “mixed economy” (in which market place activities are mixed with government “commands”), or just “the economy” (defined by scarce means and unlimited desires, the correct balancing of which is said to characterize all societies)[3]. So, actually capitalism is the economy. And there should be someone behind it takes the advantages. They are the capitalist. Then, of course, there should be the victims of this capitalism, like the owner of Beverly Hills, or people who buy Prada, and walk their Chihuahuas, etc. They represent the victim of capitalism, like we see in the very first scene of this movie. Capitalist creates such a society class: “nestle everywhere, settle everywhere, and establish connections everywhere” and giving “a cosmopolitan character to production and consumption in every country”[4]. It always changes the economy and society, and also capable creates a new form of society, satisfy the desire of people who are able to own it. The relation between this capitalism and this movie is that Nora and Mary live for years with the capitalism, living in Beverly Hills, buying Prada, etc. They are part of this ‘new form society’ who always capable enough to fulfill their desire and satisfy what they want. They have been acted like Americans, especially California girls. And they don’t even care with their real ancestor. They have lost their culture heritage, can’t speak Spanish, don’t know the Mexican tradition, etc. Even in one of the scenes Mary says that she is an American, not a Mexican. And she cares enough to not ride a terrible car, and need branded clothes, bags, etc. She needs to be viewed as part of her society, the capitalist.

The next point is the East Los Angeles. It shows us the sample of ethnicity, the Mexican. Ethnicity is naming process by which individuals or groups came to be understood or to understand themselves, as separate or different from others. This meaning of ethnicity commonly referred to the consciousness of exclusion or subordination, though it also indexed social practices – language, region, rituals, and other patterns of behavior – that define the content of group’s culture[5]. East Los Angeles has a very high concentration of Hispanic residents, primarily the Mexican descent[6]. It was ever civilized by Jewish, Japanese, and then now Mexican, just like what Nora said in the movie and Mary answered “It’s totally Calcutta.” The region was primarily Mexican American by 1950. In this movie, we can find how the condition of this East Los Angeles is. Many of Mexican speak Spanish, live together, and don’t care with the capitalism. They sew their own cloth. Like in the scene when Mary wants a dress and her aunt immediately will make it. It will be no different with the branded one. They like party, drink tequila, chitchat with family and friends.

Conclusion

To understand the ‘message’ behind the movie we just not merely watch the movie, but also identify the signs, the symbols. Movie is not only media to entertain, but also the way to describe such condition and reflects it. We need to analyze using hermeneutics for finding out the ‘meaning’ and ‘message’ behind the movie ‘about’. First we need to understand the movie ‘about’. The next step, we have to take risk to reveal the ‘message’ behind it, try to find significant signs, and elaborate it. This is the deeper level of interpretation. It all depends on the spectator’s references and experiences. The interpretation will be different among each other according to their references and experiences[7]. From Prada to Nada according to me is the way the authorship delivers the reflection of Mexican-American in America dealing with the capitalism that for years is friend with them.

References

FILMOGRAPHY

From Prada to Nada (Angel Gracia, 2011)

BOOKS

Amy, Villarejo. Film Studies The Basics. Routledge, 2007.

Keywords For American Cultural Studies.

ELECTRONIC SOURCES

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Los_Angeles_%28region%29#Ethnicity

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[1] Amy, Villarejo. Film Studies The Basics. Routledge, 2007. p.125

[2] Amy, Villarejo. Film Studies The Basics. Routledge, 2007. P.125

[3] Ruccio, David F. Capitalism. Keywords For American Cultural Studies. p.42

[4] Ruccio, David F. Capitalism. Keywords For American Cultural Studies. p.42

[5] Yu, Henry. Ethnicity. Keywords For American Cultural Studies. p.112

[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Los_Angeles_%28region%29#Ethnicity

[7] Amy, Villarejo. Film Studies The Basics. Routledge, 2007. P.117

THE STATUE

I need to read for many times to take a conclusion about what ‘THE STATUE’ by ARTHUR GREGOR talks about. I think this poem is not easy because it was not simply written. ‘The Statue’ reflects the poet’s mind as well. According to me a poem that makes the reader think, think, and think again is a good one because there’s something undecidable inside and need an extra attention to reveal it. Just like the title ‘The Statue’ itself, it’s something undecidable already. But, I fully understand now what this poem talks about.

After taking a conclusion about what this poem talks about, I get such a deep impression. This poem seems like me, someone who is living just like a statue; absurd (baroque can be meant as absurd). This ‘statue’ person can see much kind of things, the sadness, the happiness of people around them, but they can’t do anything. It’s like the characteristic of statue which is built using stone, they only can observe with the ‘eye stone’ without any act to help people around them.

This poetry is good enough because I can take myself as the part of it. Just like me, I’ve tried to destroy these statue characteristics inside me which is so absurd, I can’t even tell how could I have this kind of characteristics, and always wondering alone. With this ‘statue’ along with me, just like the character ‘a boy’ in this poem, he sees the material such as strict rows of trees, columns, fountains, and pavilions as the royal ease of the world. We (the boy and I) are such naïve ‘statue’.

Remembering I’ve tried to destroy this ‘statue-ness’ in myself for years, I’ve also tried to rid myself of rigid. But I have failed. I see the real world when someone is sad, feels the pain, and live unhappy (2^nd and 3^rd stanzas), but I just can do nothing. I just can see them without any act. How miserable I am. It happens continuously and I just can see with this ‘eye stone’, observe of what is meant to die.

People with this ‘statue’ inside them feel sorry towards others because they see a lot and zero act. I believe many of us are part of this bunch of people.

THE RED CADILLAC

When the first time I saw the title I was ‘wow’ so unique, but after I finished reading it, it’s just like nothing. It didn’t leave a deep impression to me. It was just like a poem for the author’s own sake. According to me, there’s something different between a poem which is created for someone else contains a message and a poem written just to aim the author’s goal. I don’t know why I just feel that they are different. It’s just based on my preference.

So, for me this poem is not good enough. This ‘The Red Cadillac’ is just like someone who is so much addicted to material. There’s no motion. From this poem, Willie “Slick” Williams just wants to show the reader that he has already depended to his Cadillac, the turtle wax, and the white chicks. Well, there’s something’s lacking here, just like the narration that Willie “Slick” Williams reads William Carlos Williams “So Much Depends”, then writes a letter to the producers of the TV makeover show Pimp My Ride, explaining why his car should be featured on the program, but where’s exactly the part tell us that his Cadillac need a reparation? Why does he write it while Pimp My Ride is a TV program to repair cars? Does he need the Cadillac to be repaired?

The first line is good enough because he totally copies the William Carlos Williams’. It shows us that William ‘Slick’ depends on something. The second, third, and fourth stanzas tell us the things that he so much depends. They are the Cadillac, the turtle wax to clean the car, and the white chicks. It implicitly shows us such glamorous condition, doesn’t it?

The first, red Cadillac slick, glamorous enough, even just hears this name.

Second, turtle wax. It’s the product of the largest automotive appearance company in the world and distributes its products in more than 90 countries. It seems like many people use it to clean their car. For me this turtle wax is not enough to tell us that the car is broken. Because it probably that the car just needs to be cleaned, not because this is an old car.

Third, beside the white chicks. Chicks here can be analyzed as the white (American) girls.

Then once again where’s the part that the producers of Pimp My Ride will take a conclusion that this red Cadillac needs a makeover? If I’m not mistaken, Pimp My Ride will choose the car which is broken, can’t be really used and need reparation. So what’s wrong with this Cadillac? Even this ‘William’ wrote ‘beside the white chicks’ means he can still go around the city carrying this ‘white chicks’ (the white cute (American) girls), doesn’t it?

This poem is just lacking in the part telling the reader how much broken the car. Why? It’s because in my imaginary this Cadillac is in a good condition, and this boy lives so glamorously with the ‘turtle wax’ and ‘white chicks’.