"Herod's Law" is a gripping and powerful drama from Mexico. It's the story of a man who unexpectedly becomes mayor of a town overnight. But this is a mixed blessing at best. The illiterate villagers killed all of the previous mayors, and there is no money in the treasury. The mayor finds that he must traffic with corrupt individuals in order to get anything done.
The film opens with a brutal beheading in a small Mexican village by the indigenous townspeople. The party in power appoints Juan Vargas the role of interim mayor, despite the fact that he has virtually no political experience. Vargas is innocent and naïve, and the party officials think they have found in him the perfect puppet.
Juan tries to act responsibly and help the village but he has no financial resources. The previous mayor spent all the treasury savings before he was lynched. Juan begins to collect taxes, and he starts putting in electricity. But he also must contend with some other obstacles. The town priest keeps extorting money from him, and the town doctor instantly hates him. The local brothel owner does not respect him until he makes a show of strength.
Juan becomes more and more powerful as he bribes, cheats and even kills to stay on top. It is increasingly clear that he may end up being as corrupt as the scoundrels he replaced were.
Initially, Juan's wife is very supportive and she is instrumental in his rise to power. But she is angered because he begins to neglect her in order to spend time with the local prostitutes. As the couple drifts apart, she begins spending more time with the mayor's opportunistic Caucasian sidekick.
The acting and directing are consistently convincing in "Herod's Law," and the film is strong overall. But the ending strains credibility and disrupts the gritty, realistic tone of the rest of the film. It's a great picture for three-fourths of its length.
The expression " Herod's Law," can be paraphrased as "that's the way it is," which perfectly sums up the film's view toward political corruption.
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