The literary origins of film criticism in Argentina and Uruguay: Horacio Quiroga’s reviews, 1918–1931

Abstract

Horacio Quiroga (1878–1937) is recognized by literature scholars as a groundbreaking short story writer of the twentieth century in Latin America. He was convinced of the artistic qualities of cinema at a time when film theory was still in its initial stage. Thus, it is not surprising that the writer decided to incur into the field of film criticism, publishing a series of reviews in newspapers and popular magazines, despite the new media was taken for granted by intellectuals. This article analyses the approach to cinema adopted by Quiroga during the period from 1918 to 1931, when he collaborated with these periodical publications. The objective is to describe the theoretical characteristics established by Quiroga, which elevated cinema to an art form. Likewise, the aim is to demonstrate the critical influence that literature had in the origins of this new journalistic genre in the region.