Caray, Caray!

Well one novela shouldnt get a remake and that is La Madrastra,it would be incredibly chessy and it have to have a good villian and that isnt Cesar.Perhaps Julian Gil but i cant imagine him in the role.
 

Urban:

Wonderful topic. I am partial to CS2009 cause it is the only version I have seen of that TN. I did see parts of "Yo Compro Esa Mujer" on Youtube only it was in Italian. I liked it. It was after I'd already seen CS 2009. "Mujer" had some of the same actors, ER and EY in it too. That was interesting.

I think there ought to be a ten year waiting period to remake a TN that was hugely popular. And they shouldn't cut and paste the original either. They should try to tell it from a different point of view, maybe different time period, change the names, etc. Something different, or if the first wasn't that great, make it better.

I think that is the problem with CI. The orginal "Miramar" was cut short and never aired all the material. I have never watched "Miramar" but from what I have read of the comments they cut and pasted the original pretty much and wandered off in the rest of the story. I wish that "Miramar" had been shown in its entirety to see how far it has wandered off from the original story.

They could do a good mystery for a change, or maybe something in the "Dark Shadows" genre to keep it interesting. I want to know where Televisia is getting it's writers. They have limited imaginations as far as remakes go. I want these writers to come up with new material. One can hope ; )

Thanks Urban for this great topic.
 

What a timely topic! I discussed this remake (that my co-worker from Mexico had already mentioned) to another telenovela addict in my advanced Spanish class on Wednesday evening.

She said to me: Remaking Amor Real is like repainting the Mona Lisa. Why would you even do it?
 

I agree, Novelera, except that they are making it a modern story. I just hope they do it well.

I wasn't at this blog when you guys were trashing Duelo de Pasiones, but I thought it would work better as a period piece. Except DNA testing and its ability to solve the question, the attitudes of the Father From Hell would have better suited a much earlier century. Of course, Alina could have had the same birthmark and the same colour eyes of this had been made as a 19th-C story. I thought of it as "What if Othello and Desdemona had been married 20 years and had a child before the accusation of adultery happened?"
 

They should be focusing on giving remakes to novelas that were rather crappy( I mean some novelas in the past.)
 

Great topic. Totally agree about Corazon Salvaje. The 1993 version was a masterpiece and after it they should not have made any more versions of it. I was born in the 60s, so I didn't see the first version, but I did see the second version from the 70s when I was still a kid, and it was just average. Interestingly, the second version stuck very close to the original writer's plot. One of the things that made the 1993 version great was that it was a "version libre" and really veered off of the original version. It's #1 on my personal list of favorite novelas, so I'm glad it was remade.

Another example: LQNPA was originally a radionovela, which at my age I didn't experience. But I did see the first TV version (Monte Calvario) during its original airing in 1986, when I was a teenager. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. Again, just average. I know many people loved the second version (Te Sigo Amando) from the late 90s, but I only saw bits and pieces of it because I simply didn't care for the lead actors, and if I don't care for the actors themselves I just can't get into a story. Anyway, I know many people thought it shouldn't have been made a third time, but I am SO glad they did, because I loved, loved, loved (and still love) LQNPA-2011. To me this third version is the best one, and as with the third version of Corazon Salvaje, I think the key to its success was that it veered off quite a bit from the original plot, with the male villain from the first two versions becoming the male protagonist in this third version. Brilliant. It's #2 on my personal list of favorite novelas, so again, glad it was remade.

I saw Cristal in the 80s. It was considered a phenomenon at the time. I liked the story, but I didn't care much for Jeannette Rodriguez as an actress, so it doesn't even crack the top 20 novelas for me. I missed El Privilegio de Amar, but I hear it was good. I'll take that as a given, especially compared to the two monstrosities TdeA and SdeM both of which, I confess, I watched from beginning to end. Don't ask me why. I guess I was going through a "phase", like I did recently with C.I.
 

I'd love to see all 5 versions of Mujeres Asesinas. I've seen all the Argentine episodes (now free on Hulu) and all the Mexican episodes we got, but only one Columbian episode ("Clara, Fantasiosa"). I've searched YouTube for the others but couldn't find them.
 

I wish there could be a "Turner Classic Movies" for novelas where one could see all of the novelas since they first began.

It would be incredibly educational in so many ways, especially for those, like me, who are just now seeing these programs.

I've learned a lot from many of you here and I would learn so much more if we had access to some of the older TNs. Just think of the discussion!

Maybe such a channel exists out there in the ether, but I do not know of one.

The Corazon Salvaje that all of you praise as being the best (the 1993 version), is that available in its uncut entirety on You Tube?

Fatima
 

When I first started watching telenovelas, I got to see a lot of stories from Peru, Venezuela, Argentina. I'd love to see Mexican versions, too, with the faces that I'm now so used to.

I don't have a problem with remakes, but I do think it's silly not to take into consideration the fact that someone else has probably remade your story just a few years ago.
Example: Cafe con Aroma de Mujer was a classic Columbian tn - one of my favorite.
Azteca remade it in 2002, with Silvia Navarro as its heroine and it was a huge international success.
So, Televisa decided they wanted a piece of that fame, too, and made Destillando Amor, only a few years after the Azteca version.

What I find even worse is how they started importing stories from other countries, and they produce them immediately after the original is over. Best example I can think of now: Porque el amor manda... was it really necessary to tell that story twice, one after the other?

I've seen the first two episodes of Lo que la vida... not yet sure what to say about it...I admit Amor Real was one of a kind, but I didn't like it all that much, so I figured I might enjoy this story instead.
So far I like the two protas, I think they have a good enough chemistry, so I might watch more of it, but the rest of the characters are the same old, same old...
 

Fatima, you can find Corazon Salvaje on youtube, I'm pretty sure of it.
Enjoy!
 

Fatima & Adriana Noel, take a look. Quality is variable.
 

Adriana Noel and Urban, thank you SO much!!! I am definitely going to see this one as you all have mentioned it so many times even outside this current discussion.

Thank you, Urban!!!

Fatima
 

I loved CS 93, and that's watching on DVD & you know how much they are cut. 09 was awful, anything that Mejia does is awful.

I haven't seen Cuna de lobos but have heard it was good. Mejia was going to remake that & I had heard with Wm Levy. I have heard nothing about that for quite a while so maybe it fell through & I don't think Mejia & WL have a very good relationship.

Amor Real is my favorite & they should keep their hands off of it. I just can't imagine it in present day.

Gone with the wind, Wizard of Oz, Casablanca all still stand on their own. GWTW & Oz were made in the late 30's & I can't imagine a remake, no way could you equal the originals.
Don't mess with perfection. Same with novelas.

CI is awful, but Marimar apparently isn't very well thought of either.
CI, more Mejia basura

 

Thanks for this topic. Unfortunately, I've missed your others.

Because most media is currently driven by economic imperatives, remakes and sequels are the order of the day. What I don't understand is why they remake great media? Pick a mediocre TN or film and remark that.
 

Televisa is going down!

I did some research, and went back for Televisa's latest 50 telenovelas and found that many of them have been remade up to 6 times, 3 have been remade up to 4 times, 10 have three different versions already, 30 have been remade twice, some other has been rewritten mixing two stories together, and only around 5 (10%) claim to be originals. I still doubt it.

Just like watching a TN, I started to cry!!
 

Pablo, holy cow! 6 remakes!

I agree with Karen. Remake the bad ones into something better. Has that happened? If so, which TNs were improved on the remake?

Fatima
 

I have a real problem with the DVD releases. Taking out "filler" scenes is one thing but cutting a 135-episode series down to six hours is ridiculous.

One thing I could get behind is Televisa doing a movie script of the same story and shooting that simultaneously with the same cast for the DVD release while still maintaining the important scenes from the series. This could work for a basic love story with one couple but probably wouldn't be enough for something with three sisters or four best friends, which could be an 8-hour thing.

Don't even get me started about the music rights.

Getting back to CI and Marimar, I couldn't get through the latter; I bailed after three episodes. My tolerance for Thalia is limited but when she had to talk in that stupid little-girl voice it got on my last nerve. The story becomes more unbelievable every episode; why did they even bother to remake this?
 

Both Marimar and CI were incredibly popular, so Televisa made a wise business/financial decision with that, if not a good artistic decision.

If someone could compare how these remakes do against original stories in Mexico then we might have our answer.

Even Telemundo is getting into the spirit. Since they don't have a lot of their own old tns to cannibalize, they are taking on Televisa's strategy of cannibalizing from other countries. Two most recent examples are Marido en Alquiler and Dama y Obrero. They do this all the time. The remake Alguien te Mira was a great success for them. I think El Clon also did well. These don't seem like remakes to us because we get so few South American tns here.
 

Oh, and Marimar was also a remake. Not sure how the previous versions did, but considering that the international remakes have mainly been called Marimar, clearly that was the most popular/famous version, to date.
 

One of the problems with attempting to compare television ratings is that the TV landscape changes all the time. I'm sure that there are more viewing choices now than 20 years ago so ratings start to flatten out. Not like here where it's crazy but there has to be a difference in terms of rating points.

Although Televisa still has the lion's share of viewers in Mexico the ratings before and after the birth of Azteca TV would not be comparable. Also, what is the satellite/cable penetration there? The growth of that has made a huge difference in US TV ratings.
 

Marimar was a ratings BUST in Mexico when it first aired in 1994 (I was there, so I witnessed it first hand). That is why it was cut short. But when it arrived in the US, Univision hyped it so much it was a huge hit, then it was sold to a record number of other countries. I agree CI turned out quite badly too, but at least it has some pretty good acting, whereas the acting on Marimar is awful across the board.
 

It's quite interesting when a tn does badly in its home country but becomes an international hit, like Marimar. FELS also did much better in the US than it did in Mexico. I wonder if Televisa and Uni have done any market research to figure out what the differences are. Amor Bravio did ok in Mexico but helped Uni crush the English networks during its run. Different tastes? What is it?
 

Marimar was LA VENGANZA (Helena Rojo) and before that was something else in South America.
One friend told me once that all this remakes are for the new generations, who ''deserve'' to see the classics ''in a new light''. In a new light my a$$! They should learn to appreciate the classic as it is, not pre-digested and ready to eat.
So now, because they don't want to see silents in black and white, we should remake all of them for their viewing pleasure?
I would say, leave things as they are, so they can be watched and appreciated by whoever want.
It's the ''newer generations'' loss if they don't feel like checking out the classics.
Anyway, they still have Adam Sandler!!
ITA, things that are good shouldn't be messed with.
 

I've asked the question Vivi in DC has just posed re differences in TN success in Mexico vs the US several times now, but I don't think we've really gotten to the bottom of it.

I think it is a legitimate question and deserving of an answer only because...I want to know!!! I don't know why, but it intrigues me. There must surely be a cultural aspect to it, but when I look at CI in all its ridiculousness, I wonder how in the world this TN did well in Mexico. Oh, wait, I think in Mexico, CI was in a different time slot which included a much younger viewing audience. Maybe Jarocha told us this. I can't remember.

Anywho...I sometimes wonder if the writers and producers really do think about their audience when creating these stories.

The second question I would really like answered is just who are these writers and what is their training? Are they trained at a special Televisa school for writers? If so, who are the teachers? When I look at the talented writers on this blog, I think a good number of them would do well at Televisa and would improve the end products.

Fatima

Fatima
 

Thank you...

I have been away from México for a while now, but I remember one of Thalía's biggest flops (ROSALINDA).

I would also like to know

a) if a TN has bad rating in Mex. but they don't cut it short and why, and
b) when a TN is cut short due to the same lack of interest.

I no longer trust Gossip shows like HOY, GORDO/FLACA and similar because they are not objective. They praise ANYTHING their bosses tell them to. So, I guess we should (and when I say we I mean me) find a telenovela forum in spanish where people talk about it.
 

I think they are "trained" in a Paint By The Numbers course on novela writing because I saw the same thing happening a few years ago in Telemundo's writing. I often wonder if there is a mandate that 70% of novela cliches must be used at all times in whatever random combination they pull the ballot slips out of.

I've said it before: If my Spanish were better I'd be selling my stories to Televisa and heading up writing teams.

As for the varying success between the US and Mexico this is really nothing new. US-based programs that do moderately well here can be big hits in other countries. What I think is going on is that novelas that do better here are being seen by more than the Mexican-US population. 40% of US Hispanics are from countries other than Mexico and there is also the non-Hispanic viewers. On this very blog we have female fans enamored of Eduardo Yanez, Jorge Salinas, Pablo Montero, Fernando Colunga, Sebastian Rulli, and other male stars whom we will watch even when the writing is deficient.

I did read in one of the non-Televisa magazines that male TV critics didn't like FELS because they felt that the brothers were too close and too emotional. I wonder how influential that opinion was. My personal analysis of their situation was that it made sense because of the trauma of losing their parents when they were so young (vs in PdG when they were already young adults) and having little or no adult help from that point on.

My only issues with that series was the obsession Mejia has with comic relief when it isn't appropriate and the constant in and out of other lead actors on the network's payroll (probably having to do with the low ratings in Mexico). Otherwise it had a good look, the actors had good chemistry, and it had good music (most of which I'll bet was left out of the DVD).

One more thing to keep in mind about both Televisa and Univision: Neither is satisfied with merely being ahead in the race; they have to be ahead by five lengths. If a 9PM series on either network has a 10 rating and the closest competition has a 3, that is not enough for them.

To an earlier point, Cuna de Lobos apparently was at the beginning of a remake but canceled after 13 episodes. We have previously discussed why remaking this would not work unless:

1) A different producer ran the project and
2) It would be done as a period piece.
 

I remember Marimar had the lesser response of Thalía's "Three Marías" in Mexico but this is the first time that I've heard it called "a bust". The one novela of Thalía people remember not doing well was Rosalinda and that one was still a huge hit outside of Mexico, especially in Eastern Europe.

If they cut Marimar, then I doubt they cut more than 10 episodes because producer Valentín Pimstein kept those stories short. María Mercedes had 85 episodes, Marimar had 75 and María la del Barrio had 88.

I don't mind remakes, as long as they are done well and have something to add that will improve the story. Like Corazón Salvaje 1993 did.

I think it's also okay if your remake is basically a different story with the basis of the old one, like La Que No Podía Amar or Amor Bravío. The production just has to be clear that theirs is not a real remake but more of a new story using the earlier version as a starting point. Mostly so that people stop comparing and accept that the story won't go the same way as those they watched in the past.

I remember once that my brother was complaining about Glee ruining classic songs by doing terrible versions for the show. I said to him that they didn't ruin those songs, at most, they ruined their own versions and he could still find the originals any time he wanted.

Sadly, the same can't happen with telenovelas. Once a telenovela ends, you can only watch it again in its entirety when the networks decide to rerun it and after a while, they will be nothing but a memory for those who watched. The internet has changed this a little but most people aren't yet aware that they can buy or watch complete stories online and half of those who are aware are still dubious about buying them or don't like watching in youtube and other streaming sites.

Jarocha




 

I have 12 novelas to my credit and pieces of 2 or 3 others so I don't go back as far as some of you guys do, so I can't comment on many earlier versions of popular novelas
But what's wrong with a remake? I mean that if a story is good, why not update it to more modern times?
I see nothing wrong with that. One can always say that I saw them both or all three but my favorite is and will always be the original.
I think however that if you update a movie, it shouldn't be exactly the same as the first just with different faces. A slight update of the story along with a new twist or two would do well to go along with the new set and new faces on that set. There is always a new audience tuning in that hasn't heard of the past versions, so why not an update? It would be an update to the old timers but a new story to new viewers. A case in point---CI. I had not heard of earlier versions until I read the Caray blog. I don't have the previous versions to compare with but fell in love with CI from day one. [sorry urban] CI will go down as an all-time favorite for me. So
remakes, I say why not?
the gringo
 

Well... this is what I found on http://www.network54.com/Forum/243414/ and translated it. I don't remember much of Marimar, but looks like this and the current CI are somewhay similar, having added just a deaf-mute sister, a monkey and a couple babies.
My question is. REALLY??

This telenovela tells the story of Maria Olivares (Helena Rojo), a humble peasant living with his maternal grandfather Don Maximiliano (Jose Luis Jimenez), in a hut in the Narvaez Hacienda. She meets Javier Narvaez (Enrique Lizalde) who is a pilot, his brother, Rafael Narvaez (Javier Marc) and his wife Carmen (Beatriz Sheridan) oppose to their marriage because she is poor. Carmen humiliates María making her pull a bracelet from the mud with her teeth, then burn the hut killing Don Maximiliano. Maria flees to the capital pregnant and swears revenge on the Narvaez. She gets work with businessman Don Alejandro Balmaseda (Roberto Cañedo), who is ill. Don Alejandro feel sorry for Maria's situation and gives her protection and help without knowing that she is the daughter he has sought for years. Mary is refined. All truth comes out and Mary acquires her real name, Alejandra Balmaseda, then inherites all his property, including a hotel in Santo Angelo, after her father dies of a heart attack. Alejandra takes possesion of the Hotel and faces the partner of his father, Dupré (Tony Carbajal) and his lover Andrea (Nelly Meden) who robbed him. To the surprise of Alejandra, staying at the hotel are the airline pilots of Santo Angelo, Javier Narváez, Eduardo (Raymundo Capetillo) and the stewardess Sonia (Marcela Rubiales). At a party at the hotel Alejandra meets Javier, who is struck by her similarity to María Olivares, but then discards the idea because Alejandra is a fine and distinguished woman. The Governor of St. Angelo (Germán Robles) falls for Alejandra and his daughter Lucy (Karina Duprez) is engaged to Javier. San Angelo is visited by the Sultan of Oman (Rogelio Guerra) who also falls in love with Alejandra. Rafael and his wife Carmen leave Hacienda Narvaez and come to live in San Angelo. Alexandra makes Dupré return his part of the hotel and Andrea becomes her employee and ally. Alejandra starts his revenge with the help of Andrea. On a visit to the hotel, Rafael meets Andrea and falls for her, she makes him drink and play in the casino, where he gets addicted to gambling and alcohol, loses all his money and Andrea, following Alejandra's instructions, make him sign a promissory note for a lot of money, the loses again. Now Rafael has a very large debt to the hotel, Alejandra required him to pay the money or else take away their land. When Carmen learns everything Ale has done to her husband she pleads for mercy. Alejandra tells her to come the next day to get the note. Alejandra has a mudhole built in an area of ​​the hotel and invites the governor, his daughter and Javier to be present. When Carmen arrives, Alejandra tells her in front of everybody to pick up the note with her teeth. Carmen, desperate, bends down, but Alejandra takes the note and tells her that she is not as cruel as she was years ago and gives her the note. Javier then wants to return to her but she refuses. Javier decides to marry Sofia (Luz Adriana), owner of the neighboring land to his estate. Alejandra, using another person (Estela Chacon), buys Rafael Narvaez property, he accepts and end in bankruptcy. Carmen gets hit by a car and dies. Rafael is lost in alcohol and Alejandra returns as owner of the Property of the Narvaez. At the end Javier divorces Sofia, go back to Alejandra and apologizes and they marry. -Luis Roberto (Puerto Rico)
 

Fátima:

Corazón Indomable was shown at 4 pm and La Tempestad at 9 pm. They had to compete with different shows. At 4 pm there's mostly reruns from South American telenovelas in Galavisión, news shows, talk shows, some sport shows and reruns on cable from popular shows.

At 9pm Televisa competes with the prime time telenovelas from Azteca and other national networks that are becoming popular like Cadena 3. There's also important shows from other national networks that don't show telenovelas. They also compete with all the prime time shows on Cable from the US (Criminal Minds, CSI, NCIS, Once Upon A Time, Agents of SHIELD, Grey's Anatomy, Revenge, etc.) and other countries like Spain (La Reina Isabel).

Even though channel 2 of televisa is the most watched channel by default here, the 9 pm timeslot does have to deal with more competence than any other timeslot.

Jarocha
 

Wow Pablo the "writers" for CI have truly cut and pasted as people like LatinainMD have told us. What is sad is how poorly it has been written b/c they have a talented cast.
 

Thanks so much Jarocha for your info.

Another issue UA mentioned that I will never understand is why Televisa does not make entire editions of a tn available for certain tns. They have to know at this point that a high quality DVD/blu-ray of CS 1993 would be an international cash cow. And they must secure the rights (which they should have) of the music too.

I also have a question about edited tns like LT now. When they rebroadcast it in a few years, will it be edited or will the entire tn play?
 

My name is Urban Anthropologist and I have watched rebroadcasts.

Most of the time Univision rebroadcasts the entire US edition. If it plays in a different time slot they might censor language to a greater or lesser degree out of fear of the moral watchdogs that straitjacket the English-language networks. Sometimes they will remove some "filler" scenes but I have never seen them remove scenes involving the main characters.

As for why they don't release full-series editions of novelas, it may be that the market won't go for it due to the sticker price. Also, I don't think they want to lose audiences that would otherwise tune in to their new stuff.
 

Good point UA. But if Uni/Televisa can't use the market to come up with a reasonable price for full-length DVDs I have to question their competence. They could test things with CS and have it a price the market should bear. And if they estimated on the lower side of things, they would just bring in more revenue. They should also be selective (similar to how Disney only brings certain films from the vault) about which tns they make this kind of investment.

Perhaps they don't want to do this b/c if people see how good some of the old tns are, they may demand better tns now.
 

I thought I had seen less than 10 TNs like gringo, but just like when you move, turn out they are more than 20.

1986 Cuna de Lobos (saw it in the original run, it was a hit!)
1991 Cadenas de amargura
1996 Cañaveral de Pasiones
1997 Mirada de Mujer (Azteca, excellent)
2000 Uga Uga (saw it twice) Brasil
2001 El clon (and bits from the ugly remake) Brasil
2002 Purasangre (Chile)
2003 Amor descarado (Chile)
2003 Mirada de mujer, el regreso (not so good)
2003 Amor Real (DVDs bought at Kroger for 2.99, Coca-Cola edition)
2004 Rubí (DVD condensed edition)
2004 Color del pecado (Brasil)
2004 Los Sánchez (Azteca) remade as UFCS
2005 La madrastra (hated it)
2006 En los tacones de Eva (Colombia)
2006 Amores de mercado (Telemundo, remake of Amor descarado)
2007 Lola, érase una vez
2007 Amor sin maquillaje (''homage'' to the 50th anniversary of TNs in Mex. awful!)
2007 Palabra de mujer (remake of El amor tiene cara de mujer, loved Delia Ibarra)
2010 Para volver a amar
2011 El secretario (haven't finished yet)
2012 Abismos de pasión
2012 Por ella soy eva (intro to Caray)
2012 Corona de lágrimas (awful)
2012 Porque el amor manda (awful)
2012 Vivir a destiempo (Azteca)

I think I am getting burnt out...
 

Pablo, your earlier point about remaking things "for the new generation" deserves to be answered in a separate post. I completely agree with you. It's exactly what I described in the lead post comparing EPDA with TdA.

The same thing is happening in the movies right now with the original 1976 vs the new version of Carrie. The new version updates the story to the present and -- from my perspective as a person who has read the book and seen every movie version of it -- it doesn't work to do that. It makes an already incredible situation even less credible. It is pandering to the generation-centric mindset of today's teens by not allowing them to relate to teens of the past and to see that technology doesn't change people's basic natures.
 

Well... let's just say that some remakes are totally unnecessary... if not all of them.

Like someone said, the remake should enhance the original somehow, maybe with new effects, or something like it.
But there are remakes that are made just because people who make them don't know how else spend their money.

I used to watch Telefórmula, and Maxine Woodside addressed this issue to María Zarattini on the phone.

Zarattini said that remaking stuff WAS MORE DIFFICULT THEN WRITING SOEMTHING ORIGINAL, because they had to make so many changes, time, places, people, etc.

So, why do you keep doing them, asked Ms Woodside, if it is SO DIFFICULT?

Because people ask for it. People like those classic stories and they want to see them over and over.

REALLY MARIA ZARATTINI, REALLY?
Are you sure you asked around? Nobody has ever asked me anything.

Univisión uses the same excuse when they make changes (at their convenience), because YOU ASKED US FOR IT! We deliver!! BS!
 

@Jarocha - you may be right that if Marimar was cut, it wasn't cut by much. After all, "La Venganza" was even shorter than Marimar - I think it was like 60 episodes. So I can't say for sure if it was significantly cut or not.

But what I can assure you about is that Marimar was indeed a ratings "BUST" in Mexico. I was in Mexico for several months in 1994 taking some classes, and I liked reading all the weekly entertainment mags, which always provided ratings numbers. Marimar's ratings numbers were dismal during its whole run in Mexico.
 

LatinaInMD. Maybe the ratings were low compared to the novelas airing at the same time, like Dos Mujeres un Camino, which was a huge hit back then or the final weeks of Corazón Salvaje, which ended mid February with fantastic ratings (Marimar started in January). Sometimes the magazines tend to exaggerate the numbers (high or low).

I found this essay from the Autonomous Metropolitan University (UAM in Spanish initials): Telenovelas: la ficción que se llama realidad. It cites IBOPE's average ratings for Marimar at 40 pts. That's actually a good number.

Also worth of notice is that Marimar was the first novela measured by IBOPE which uses people meters like Nielsen, all previous novelas from 1993 and back were measured by INRA, which used surveys. With INRA, novelas showed peaks in ratings up to 70 pts. That never happened once IBOPE was introduced, no novela ever showed peaks above 50.

Jarocha
 

Dear Jarocha, you are such a gem to provide us with so much excellent information. This helps so much (surely for me) in the learning process. I don't want to just learn the language, I want to know and feel the culture.

THANK YOU!

Fatima...who is really on the run this morning, but will comment later on the really wonderful comments today!
 

Dear Pablo...what a list you have compiled! I am envious!!!

Fatima
 

This comment has been removed by the author.
 

Hello there , I'm a huge fan of Latin telenovelas, me & my friends made a group to translate Novelas into arabic, now we are intrested in translating lo que la vida me robóand I saw that u post picture with a Eng CC .. can u help us and tell us where can we download the Episodes with ENg CC plllz
 

I recently learned that a studio plans to make another Highlander movie. However, , the star Ryan Reynolds dropped out as did two different directors. Many Highlander fans do not want anyone to mess with the success of the original movie and the success of the TV series. some , however, would like to see a true Scot in the role. We will have to wait and see what happens.

Are there any American movie remakes that you have enjoyed as much or more than the originals ?
 

Susanlynn, I am a huge fan of the Highlander series and totally, absolutely, positively agree that a bona fide Scotsman is needed for the remake. Somehow, fiddling with "my" Highlander series seems sacrilege, but what can we do?

I am VERY frustrated today. I am away on a business trip and in a lovely hotel which does NOT have Univision. I could scream! They have something called Estrella TV. Well, let me tell you, I see NOTHING star worthy on this channel.

What a wonderful weekend topic, Urban. I am still rereading the comments. Thanks so much to everyone.

Fatima
 

Jarocha

I never understood why Dos Caminos was popular in Mexico, It was horrible and remains to this day on my worst ever list. I still cringe when i remember that scene with Erik Estrada trying to speak English with a Mexican accent.

Pablo

You mentioned a remake of La Madrastra. The most recent one with Ruffo and Evora was ridiculous. It was a remake of a Chilean one which was much tighter and didn't have that insane cross dressing killer.

I'd like to see a remake of Hurican the Paloma version was good but maybe it was just him.
 

Well... popular doesn't mean it's good. Popular means people have bad taste. I mean, that appeals to a lot of people regardless...

It was popular because of everything mixed in. Statuesque Bibi Gaytán in her daisy dukes, Laura León, Bronco (still popular despite many problems), Erik Estrada, Selena, whoever made that TN threw in juárever was in fashion in that date and made something very low but very appealing to masses. Popular yes. Good no.
 

I agree with the examples used to show how production companies, especially Televisa, are overdoing it with the remakes. I shudder especially when I think of horrors such as Corazon Salvaje 09 and Triunfo del Horror.

Personally, I preferred Sacrificio de Mujer to Triunfo del Amor. Sacrificio was like a free version of Cristal, but it wasnt really a remake of Cristal per say, it was just a similar storyline. Compared to TdA where we had to endure through Victoria crying and crying, at least clemencia was strong and formidable and her actions were caused by the genuine loss of her daughter which made her continue making the wrong choices until she finally realised the truth. Cristal worked for its time, but TdA was, frankly speaking, a horrible adaptation. Why was Senora Bernarda soooo evilll? She was a complete psychopath who had no genuine reasons behind her actions. why did she hate Victoria? Why did she want her son to become a priest? Nothing made sense in that telenovela, but then its typical Televisa with the villans from hell, absurd storylines, etc.
The casting of Milagros parents in Sacrificio was not appropriate, i agree, for Marjorie and Juan Alfonso were just too young to pass off as her parents. But the story was told in a simple manner without insulting the audience.

I wonder also why CI was so successful? Better yet, why are people still interested in "telenovelas rosas"? Some of them are guilty pleasures cause you know everything is so predictable but you watch to see if the writers have tried to be at least creative. CI is based on such an antiquated story, and I really wasn't interested in this "muchacha salvaje" storyline again, but such stories involving cenicientas are right up Senora Salvador Mejia's storyline. Apparently, she is planning a remake of "La GAta", another umpteenth remake, to star the extremely wooden Maite Perroni who might probably use her same interpretation of Marichuy and Daniel Areanas as the cliche galan from a snobbish rich family who will hate "la gata" for absolutely no good reason. Then, I bet there will be storylines involving stolen inheritances, pregnancies being hidden, people accused of crimes they didn't commit, pscyho villanas obsessed with the galan for absolutely no good reason who will go around killing everyone and everyone *sigh*

We can already bet TDA will be remade in the next 3 yrs.
 

Urban, after watching 'Corazón Salvaje' (1993) for about the fourth time, I finally found and watched 'Yo compro esa mujer'.

I remember you wrote a post about refritos, and came across your posting (here) that summarized the difference versions of a telenovela..

I couldn't agree with you more that CS93 is not only the best version, but perhaps the absolute best telenovela of all time, followed by 'Amor Real'. IMO.

It's a shame Televisa can't find new material and just keeps regurgitating the same old-same old.

Thank you for putting this post together.

There hasn't been anything of great interest for quite some time on Univision or Telemundo. It's a good thing I don't mind re-watching old novelas.

 

Well unfortunately it did get a remake, terrible too!