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MARIA FELIX, 88

Maria Felix, an icon of classic Mexican films and a tart commentator on national life, died Monday.

It was her 88th birthday. Friends said Ms. Felix died of a heart attack at her home in the leafy city of Cuernavaca, just outside Mexico City. She also had a home in Paris where she spent half the year.

Ms. Felix, who was called Mexico’s Marilyn Monroe, made 47 movies in her career. The former university beauty queen was married four times and was linked romantically with the late Mexican painter Diego Rivera. Her only son, Enrique Alvarez, died in 1996.

Mexican President Vicente Fox said Ms. Felix’s death was a huge loss for Mexico and that her gifts as an actress brought her country great attention.

“There have been few of her stature and quality,” Fox said.

He also paid homage to Ms. Felix’s frequent criticism of past governments and her defense of women’s rights.

“I say from my heart that she was one of those who promoted the democratic change in Mexico,” he said.

Ms. Felix, a striking beauty with long dark hair, made her film debut in 1942 in “El Penon de las Animas” (“The Peak of the Souls”) alongside popular Mexican actor Jorge Negrete, whom she later married.

Ms. Felix often portrayed strong, silent women, endowed with intelligence and glamour.

“I have only been a woman with the heart of a man,” she once said by way of explaining her success as an actress.

Born in Alamos as Maria de los Angeles Felix Guerena, she became affectionately known as “La Dona,” or “The Dame,” in Mexico after her hit film “Dona Barbara” in 1943.

Little has been published about her background, adding to her myth. Nobel laureate Octavio Paz wrote of her, “Maria was born twice: Her parents created her and later she invented herself.”

Although she shunned Hollywood, Ms. Felix’s sultry beauty symbolizing the golden era of Mexican cinema in the 1940s and 1950s made her a screen idol in Latin America, France, Spain and Italy.

In 1996, France awarded her the nation’s highest distinction, the National Order of Arts and Letters.

One of the films of which she was most proud was “French Cancan” (1954), directed by Jean Renoir. Ms. Felix’s last starring role was in “La Generala” (“The Lady General”) in 1970.

After surprising her fans in 1998 with the release of a record titled “In Love,” she declared she would return to cinema shortly. She never did.