Maid in Manhattan, a film starring Jennifer Lopez, induced an array of outlooks and identifications in me. While watching this film, I could not help but think about the connection between being Latina and working in the guest service industry as a maid. The more I kept watching the film the question arose to me if this film would even be the same if Jennifer Lopez's character, Marisa, was cast as a white woman rather than a Latina. I do not think it would be the same because I believe the imagery between being Latina or Mexican-American and also a maid is too prominent for Hollywood film production to ignore. I also felt the role of a Latina working as a maid was done in a manner that dismisses white guilt. .
This film simply would not have panned out as well as it did if the main character, Marisa, was a white woman. It is no secret that this film is a playoff of the Cinderella story; now if Marisa was white it would just be the same old Cinderella story. The race component adds a layer of difficulty for Marisa to move out of her situation. This could also be said for the dominant culture at large. I believe that if Latinas were to watch this movie it tells them that they can reach social mobility as a minority, person of color and female. The movie depicts that a Latina can easily make a white, wealthy politician fall in love with her because of their honesty and humor. This is possible because it happened to Marisa. I think this speaks so loudly to Latinas, but also to all women of color. This may not have been the intent of the production, to market big time actresses and movies to Latina audiences, but it definitely sent a message to the viewers. To me, this was extremely effective. .
Indeed, Maid in Manhattan is a Cinderella story like I earlier depicted, so the role surrounding Marisa's gender is to be expected. But this film also portrays Marisa as a hotel maid, known in several scenes as "Maria" by a hotel guest.
