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''Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado'' is a 2020
documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
about the life and career of
Walter Mercado Walter Mercado Salinas (March 9, 1931 – November 2, 2019), also known by his stage name Shanti Ananda, was a Puerto Rican astrologer, actor, dancer, and writer, best known as a television personality for his shows as an astrologer. His astro ...
, one of the most influential and important
astrologer Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that propose that information about human affairs and terrestrial events may be discerned by studying the apparent positions ...
s in Latin America and the world. The documentary, directed by Cristina Costantini and Kareem Tabsch, features interviews with Mercado himself, his assistant Willy Acosta, the Mercado Salinas family, among many other public figures of Latino entertainment and television. The film premiered at the
2020 Sundance Film Festival The 2020 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 23 to February 2, 2020. The first lineup of competition films was announced on December 4, 2019. The opening night film was '' Miss Americana'' directed by Lana Wilson and produced by Morg ...
and was released on
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
on July 8, 2020.


Synopsis

The documentary accounts
Walter Mercado Walter Mercado Salinas (March 9, 1931 – November 2, 2019), also known by his stage name Shanti Ananda, was a Puerto Rican astrologer, actor, dancer, and writer, best known as a television personality for his shows as an astrologer. His astro ...
's early life as a gifted child in
Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...
in the 1930s, living in a rural area of sugar cane plantations with his family. While his brother, Henry, was away working with their father, Walter stayed at home with his mother, where he played piano and read books, inspiring himself to become a creative person. During his time as a student of the
University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Universidad de Puerto Rico;'' often shortened to UPR) is the main List of state and territorial universities in the United States, public university system in the Commonwealth (U.S. i ...
in the 1950s, he began dancing and acting in theater, later moving on to acting roles in
telenovelas A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar Drama (film and television), drama genres around the w ...
. After a impromptu astrology segment in a TV show, requested by its producer
Elín Ortiz Elín Ortiz (December 14, 1934 – June 12, 2016) was a Puerto Rican actor, comedian and producer. He died on June 12, 2016, primarily due to Alzheimer's Disease. Early years Elín Ortiz graduated from Ponce High School at the age of 16. Career ...
, Walter had his first big break on television as an astrologer, which would later on bring him his first TV show and rise to fame locally in Puerto Rico and then with international audiences, after Bill Bakula became his manager. Walter went on to perform his astrology segments and shows with elaborate costumes and capes, with flamboyant colors and styles. At the same time, he faced homophobia targeted at his flamboyant and
androgynous Androgyny is the possession of both masculine and feminine characteristics. Androgyny may be expressed with regard to biological sex or gender expression. When ''androgyny'' refers to mixed biological sex characteristics in humans, it often r ...
image, leading many to question his sexuality, which he reluctantly declined to address during his lifetime. At one point in his life, Walter was also involved in the Psychic Friends Network telephone hotline. His career took a turn when Walter signed an overlooked contract that gave away the rights to his name, likeness, image, printed works and media, both past and future, over to Bill Bakula's company, which cost Mercado a six-year legal battle to win back, dissolving their professional relationship. After winning back the rights to use his own name, Walter suffered a heart attack from the stress of his legal battle and had his last television appearance on October 3, 2006. Death, spiritualism and religions are themes that Walter discussed countlessly throughout his career, including
reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the Philosophy, philosophical or Religion, religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new lifespan (disambiguation), lifespan in a different physical ...
,
life after death ''Life After Death'' is the second and final studio album by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released on March 25, 1997, by Bad Boy Records and distributed by Arista Records. A double album, it was released sixteen days after his murder. ...
and
theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...
. With his nieces Ivonne and Betty, and his assistant Willy, Walter visits the historic
Teatro La Perla Teatro La Perla is a historic theater in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. Inaugurated in 1864, it is the second oldest theater of its kind in Puerto Rico, but "the largest and most historic in the Spanish-speaking Caribbean." The theater was name ...
, in Ponce, reminiscing about the many theater productions he starred in. Back in
San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...
, Walter is visited by
Lin-Manuel Miranda Lin-Manuel Miranda (; born January 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, actor, singer, filmmaker, rapper, and librettist. He created the Broadway musicals '' In the Heights'' and ''Hamilton'', and the soundtracks for the animated films '' Moana' ...
and his father
Luis Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archai ...
, both long-time admirers of Mercado, when ''
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
'' was premiering in Puerto Rico in January 2019. After Miranda posted a photo of him and Mercado on his social media accounts, many long-time Walter Mercado fans were surprised after learning he was still alive, even after years out of the public eye. Walter's fame became a relevant cult-following among
millennials Millennials, also known as Generation Y or Gen Y, are the demographic cohort following Generation X and preceding Generation Z. Researchers and popular media use the early 1980s as starting birth years and the mid-1990s to early 2000s a ...
, spawning
memes A meme (; ) is an idea, behavior, or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning representing a particular phenomenon or theme. A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural ...
, pop art, clothing and drinks with his name or image. In May 2019, the HistoryMiami Museum invited Walter to an exhibition celebrating his life and honoring his fifty-year professional career as an astrologer. After a professional photoshoot for the exhibition and one week before opening night, Walter fell out of his bed and then slipped and fell in his bathroom, fracturing a rib and part of the dorsal vertebrae of his spine. However, he quickly recovers and is able to travel to
Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
with his family to participate in a press junket and promote the exhibition. On opening night, Walter is honored among his guests and fans in what would be his final public appearance, three months before his death. Walter Mercado died in San Juan, Puerto Rico on November 2, 2019. The film ends with a dedication to the filmmakers' grandmothers and all grandmothers in the world.


Featured interviews


Appearances via archival interviews


Reception

''Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado'' premiered at the
2020 Sundance Film Festival The 2020 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 23 to February 2, 2020. The first lineup of competition films was announced on December 4, 2019. The opening night film was '' Miss Americana'' directed by Lana Wilson and produced by Morg ...
, and was released on July 8, 2020, on Netflix. The film holds a approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on reviews with an average rating of . The website's critics consensus reads: "An absorbing and affectionate tribute to a unique individual, ''Mucho Mucho Amor'' should prove fascinating for Walter Mercado fans as well as first-timers." Stephanie Zacharek of
Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
said the film is a "delightful and open-hearted documentary".


Accolades

The film qualified for eligibility for nomination for the
93rd Academy Awards The 93rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released from January 1, 2020, to February 28, 2021, at Union Station in Los Angeles. The ceremony was held on April 25, 2021 ...
in the category of Best Documentary Feature. Official selection of: *
2020 Sundance Film Festival The 2020 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 23 to February 2, 2020. The first lineup of competition films was announced on December 4, 2019. The opening night film was '' Miss Americana'' directed by Lana Wilson and produced by Morg ...
* 2020
SxSW Film Festival South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has continued growing in both s ...
* 2020
True/False Film Festival True/False Film Fest is an annual documentary film festival that takes place in Columbia, Missouri. The Fest occurs on the first weekend in March (sometimes beginning in late February), with films being shown from Thursday evening to Sunday nigh ...
* 2020
Full Frame Documentary Film Festival The Full Frame Documentary Film Festival is an annual international event dedicated to the theatrical exhibition of non-fiction cinema founded by Nancy Buirski, a Pulitzer Prize-winning photo editor of ''The New York Times'' and documentary filmma ...
* 2020
Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is the largest documentary festival in North America. The event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 27th edition of the festival took place online throughout May and Jun ...
* 2020
Miami International Film Festival The Miami Film Festival, formerly Miami International Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Miami, Florida, each March. Since 2015 the festival also runs a smaller Fall Festival, known as the Miami Film Festival GEMS, which presents ...
* 2020
Guadalajara International Film Festival The Guadalajara International Film Festival () is a week-long film festival held each March in the Mexican city of Guadalajara since 1986. The presence in Guadalajara of delegates from other important festivals from around the world has helped M ...
* 2020 Sun Valley Film Festival * 2020 Ambulante Film Festival * 2020
San Diego Latino Film Festival The San Diego Latino Film Festival (SDLFF) is an annual film festival held in San Diego, California. It was founded in 1993. History The festival helped pave the way for diverse groups and cultures in the film industry. Ethan van Thillo found ...
* 2020
Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) is a film festival held annually in Seattle, Washington, United States, since 1976. It usually takes place in late May and/or early June. It is one of the largest festivals in the world, and feature ...
* 2020
Frameline Film Festival The Frameline Film Festival (also known as San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival and formerly known as San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival; San Francisco International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival) is an annual event that ...


References


External links

* * {{IMDb title, 11378264 2020 documentary films 2020 films American documentary films Netflix original documentary films Topic Studios films 2020s American films Films about astrology