Viva Zapata! is a 1952 fictional-biographical film directed by Elia Kazan. The screenplay was written by John Steinbeck, using as a guide Edgcomb Pinchon's book, 'Zapata the Unconquerable', a fact that is not credited in the titles of the film. It is a fictionalized account of the life of Mexican Revolutionary Emiliano Zapata from his peasant upbringing, through his rise to power in the early 1900s, to his death. To give the film as authentic a feel as possible, Kazan and producer Darryl F. Zanuck studied the numerous photographs that were taken during the revolutionary years, the period... between 1909 and 1919 when Zapata led the fight to restore land taken from the people during the dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz. Kazan was especially impressed with the Agustin Casasola collection of photographs and he attempted to duplicate their visual style in the film. Kazan also acknowledged the influence of Roberto Rosselini's Paisan. Zapata is part of a delegation sent to complain about injustices to corrupt longtime President Porfirio Díaz , but Díaz condescendingly dismisses their concerns.
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| Release date: | 1952 |
| Directed by: | Elia Kazan |
| Runtime: | 113 Minutes |
| Producer: | Darryl F. Zanuck |
| Editor: | Barbara McLean |
| Music by: | Alex North |
| Cinematography: | Joseph MacDonald |
| Screenplay by: | John Steinbeck, Edgecumb Pinchon |