The Old Thieves

Until recently, petty theft in Mexico City was an occupation subject to a strict code of honour. Ranking in the hierarchy of thieves depended, as in any other profession, on talent and personal ambition. A «Zorrero» had to know how to burgle a house «cleanly», i.e. without using guns or violence. «King of the Zorreros» was the respectful title given to the films main protagonist, Efrain Alcaraz, alias El Carrizos. He became famous in the 1970s due to his burgling the home of the countrys president. At that time his greatest adversary was a secret service agent, known by his pseudonym Dracula. For professional reasons, these two characters worked hand in hand for a while before betraying one another. This mutual dependence raises questions of principle, and issues of law and justice: which of the two bandits was worst? The film refuses to provide a clear-cut answer. The montage of archival footage, alternating with declarations by the two elderly thieves and their adversaries, lets slip a glimmer of social romanticism that disappears as swiftly as it surfaces. Has any documentary ever featured a finer raconteur than El Carrizos?