In this episode of Tale Oft Told, we explore Jorge Fons’ 1995 Mexican masterpiece Callejón de los Milagros through the lens of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth — examining poverty, longing, exploitation, migration, youth, and the impossible pursuit of miracles in Mexico City.
Starring a young Salma Hayek as Alma, Midaq Alley transforms Naguib Mahfouz’s Egyptian novel into a deeply human portrait of people struggling to escape the underworld of economic hardship and emotional desperation.
Topics discussed include:
• Orpheus and Eurydice in modern film
• Mexican cinema of the 1990s
• Salma Hayek’s early career
• Poverty and migration
• Femininity and exploitation
• Love, illusion, and fatalism
• Why Abel never really had a chance
Welcome to Tale Oft Told — a podcast exploring love and loss through recurring myths hidden inside everyday movies and media.
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