La huella de unos labios

After her fiance is murdered, María decides to get close to the man she believes is responsible. She takes a dangerous, intimate role in his life, pretending to be someone else so she can collect proof, learn his habits, and position herself to push for a legal reckoning. Along the way she copes with shame, fear, and the practical needs of survival while trying to keep her plan from collapsing. The story moves through tense encounters and quiet observations, focusing on how far a person will go to secure evidence and seek accountability, without revealing the outcome or any major surprises.

Released in 1952, the film was directed by Juan Bustillo Oro and adapts material by Cornell Woolrich. It stars Rosario Granados, Carlos López Moctezuma, Rubén Rojo, and Luis Beristáin, and was produced within Mexico's studio system of the era.

Box office figures for La huella de unos labios are not well documented, and it did not enter international box office lists. Contemporary commercial impact appears modest, with most attention coming later from film historians and genre enthusiasts.

Critical response is limited, reflected by a small number of modern ratings. Reviewers and viewers who discuss the film point to its noir-inflected mood, moral ambiguity, and tight plotting. Themes include revenge versus justice, exploitation and survival, and how gender shapes options in a violent world. The performances, especially Granados as María, often get the most attention.

The picture fits into a midcentury Mexican crime cinema trend that used shadowy atmospheres and tense moral dilemmas. It’s of particular interest to those studying Cornell Woolrich adaptations and noir influences in Latin American film, and it shows how filmmakers of the period handled dark subject matter within local production constraints.