PROBLEMATIC IDEAS OF PUERTO RICO IN PUERTO RICAN CINEMA: LUIS MOLINA CASANOVA'S LA GUAGUA AEREA

Many Puerto Rican critics from the island and from the mainland have argued that Puerto Rican identity is characterized not as "either/or" but as "both/and"; that is, it is an in-between site of transgression that encompasses everything, including contradictions and discontinuities. What are the consequences when "both/and" intercultural relations mark one's identity as a "native of nowhere"? In the 1993 comedy film La guagua aerea, a loose adaptation of Puerto Rican writer Luis Rafael Sanchez's 1983 essay of the same title, Puerto Rican filmmaker Luis Molina Casanova showcases Puerto Rican identity as one that expands beyond the island's geopolitical boundaries. In the film, Puerto Rican identity is portrayed in a state of constant transit between island and mainland political, social, and cultural sites, yet it is also constrained and limited by conservative narratives and myths of Puerto Rican essence and uniqueness. Throughout the film, the ideas of identity construction and the geo-politics of knowledge create tensions and limitations that problematize the production of definitions and meanings of "Puerto Rico" versus being a native of nowhere in Puerto Rican cinema.