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Two second-half goals gave Mexico their first ever victory over France to leave El Tri well-placed to make the last 16 and the 2006 runners-up on the verge of elimination.
Mexico were the brighter of the two throughout but were unable to take any of their chances until just after the hour, when substitute Javier Hernandez broke the offside trap and rounded keeper Hugo Lloris before slotting home.
Another Mexican substitute, the 37-year-old Cuauhtemoc Blanco, sealed the victory from the penalty spot after a third replacement, Pablo Barrera, had been felled in the box.
It leaves Mexico level at the top of Group A with Uruguay and a draw between those two sides in their final game in Rustenburg would send France out of the tournament.
Mexico and France met in the first ever World Cup finals match in Montevideo, Uruguay in 1930, with Les Bleus cruising to a 4-1 victory, but this keenly contested encounter was never likely to reproduce such a scoreline.

Both teams showed greater endeavour than in their drawn opening games, with France in particular looking more lively, but for long periods neither possessed the cutting edge to truly punish their opponents.
The French squad is reportedly in disarray, with suggestions of a training ground bust-up between coach Raymond Domenech and midfielder Florent Malouda, who was not selected for their uninspired 0-0 draw with Uruguay, and they have been criticised by former midfielder Zinedine Zidane.
However, Malouda was recalled in place of Yoann Gourcuff in a line-up that kept faith with a world class strike-force, spearheaded by Nicolas Anelka, that has failed to register an international goal since last November.
Malouda showed rare glimpses of the form he showed throughout last season for Chelsea, forcing Mexico keeper Oscar Perez to palm over early in the second half, having earlier begun a free-kick routine straight off the training ground that saw Frank Ribery flash a drive across goal.
This was the closest Ribery would come to affecting the game from his central playmaker role and, as against Uruguay, Anelka was largely anonymous and was replaced at half-time by Andre-Pierre Gignac, who also offered little in his 45 minutes on the pitch.
Mexico's attack is exciting but too often lightweight. Their forwards missed numerous chances in their opening 1-1 draw with hosts South Africa but all three players retained their place in the side - although Arsenal striker Carlos Vela was forced off with an injury on the half hour with only one skied shot to his name.
Another member of their attacking triumvirate, Tottenham's Giovani Dos Santos, produced another lively display to match the one he produced against South Africa and, but for Patrice Evra's presence, would have been able to get greater purchase on a shot that bobbled wide just before half-time.
Mexico's chief offensive weapon in the first half was left-back Oscar Salcido, who regularly found himself in advanced positions, but his execution could not match his intent.
He had two good shooting opportunities in the first half but from the first he shot wide of the far post from 25 yards, and then saw a close-range effort blocked by France keeper Lloris after William Gallas had inexplicably backed away from Salcido's run.
The opening of the second half had seen a clear dip in quality from what had been a decent first 45 minutes, but two positive Mexican substitutes - Hernandez and Blanco - altered that, with a third, Vela's replacement Barrera, also playing a part.
In the 64th minute, Marquez chipped a ball forward from midfield, Eric Abidal played the Manchester United-bound striker onside and with the French defence static and begging for offside, Hernandez was able to advance onwards, skip round Lloris and slot into the vacated goal.
France's response was meek at best but the Mexicans, by now full of confidence, continued to press and were rewarded when Barrera was tripped and Blanco charged in from outside the box to dispatch his penalty into the right-hand corner of the net.

France and Uruguay contested a truly awful goalless draw in the second match of the 2010 World Cup at the Cape Town Stadium.
The result ensured that both of the opening day Group A fixtures ended in draws - but there was much more to savour in South Africa's earlier game against Mexico.

The match in Cape Town never really got going; instead of sparking into life, it deteriorated into a largely forgettable contest only briefly illuminated by the occasional moment of trickery and skill.
In a game of few chances, Uruguay came closest to scoring through a Diego Forlan shot that was saved in the opening half, while they finished the contest with 10 men after substitute Nicolas Lodeiro picked up two bookings.
France were arguably the better team and might have snatched the points with a free-kick from a promising position deep into injury-time, but substitute Thierry Henry's strike hit the wall.
Both teams had laboured through qualification, requiring play-offs to reach South Africa, and their lack of fluency was clear to see.
France, who recently switched to a 4-3-3 formation, lost to China in their final warm-up game and were too ponderous in possession against La Celeste, with a lack of understanding undermining their efforts.
This was encapsulated in one move when Abou Diaby, surprisingly recalled in favour of Florent Malouda amid suggestions of a training ground row with manager Raymond Domenech, played a superb through ball for Sidney Govou.
But striker Nicolas Anelka, who made way for Henry with 20 minutes left, intercepted the pass after returning from an offside position and a promising opening was completely wasted.
Franck Ribery was an early threat down the left and his low cross after seven minutes should have been converted by Govou, while playmaker Yoann Gourcuff had few opportunities to showcase his skills - although he almost caught Fernando Muslera out with a free-kick from a tight angle on 17 minutes.
France's holding midfielder Jeremy Toulalan was reduced to trying his luck from more than 35 yards, while Uruguay's Diego Lugano mystified his team-mates by shooting at goal from deep inside his own half.
Toulalan was booked for a heavy tackle on Alvaro Pereira after 68 minutes and locked horns with Lugano seconds later. Domenech came on to the pitch to try to calm the situation, but at least it was something to rouse the crowd, leading to a brief cacophony of vuvuzela sounds.
Forlan, who forced an excellent first-half save from Hugo Lloris after cutting inside and shooting from 20 yards, was impressive for Uruguay.
The Atletico Madrid striker was alive with craft and invention, but he wasted a decent opening with 20 minutes left, shooting wide from 16 yards after a decent lay-off from Luis Suarez.
Striker Suarez, with 49 goals in 48 games for Ajax last season, was all too frequently caught offside, while playmaker Ignacio Gonzalez was a peripheral figure.
Uruguay coach Javier Aguirre brought on the highly rated Lodeiro in place of Gonzalez shortly after the restart, and Domenech replaced Gourcuff with Malouda.
Lodeiro's only mark on the game was arguably made on the ankle of Bakari Sagna as the Uruguayan picked up his second booking with 10 minutes to go.
Henry almost produced a moment of late drama with a header that glanced across the face of goal and had an appeal for a handball against Mauricio Victorino turned down as Uruguay held on.

France midfielder Lassana Diarra has been ruled out of this summer's World Cup with a stomach injury.
The Real Madrid star, 25, has been ordered to rest for an "indefinite period", according to a statement from the French Football Federation.
Diarra, who made coach Raymond Domenech's 24-man shortlist for his 23-strong World Cup squad, suffered the setback on a team trek in Tignes.
A replacement has not yet been called up for the former Portsmouth player.
"Medical tests have revealed an unforeseeable illness which justifies a rest period," said France team spokesman Francois Manardo.
"As a consequence, Lassana Diarra will miss the World Cup."
Domenech has until 1 June to submit his final selection to tournament organisers Fifa, but can include players from outside the group of 24 he named on Monday.
"It's a blow when you lose a player. It's even harder because it wasn't a choice, it's destiny," said Domenech.
"It's tough for him because I know how much effort he had put into this World Cup. He was one of the driving forces of this team in terms of the way he played and his attitude."
Diarra's injury might force a recall as he is one of only seven midfielders in Domenech provisional group.
The anchorman played in 10 of France's 12 matches in their 2010 World Cup qualification campaign.
Diarra, who also played for Arsenal and Chelsea during his time in England, missed training on Friday and Saturday after picking up the injury whilst altitude training on a mountain glacier on Thursday.
Although France open their campaign against Uruguay at sea level in Cape Town on 11 June, they then travel over 1000m up to play Mexico and South Africa in Polokwane and Bloemfontein respectively.
Since his injury Diarra's defensive role has been filled by Arsenal anchorman Abou Diaby in training.
Domenech is unlikely to risk a repeat of Euro 2008, when he selected Patrick Vieira even though the midfielder had not fully recovered from a thigh injury.
Vieira never recovered and did not play in the tournament, where France went out in the group stages without winning a game.
France squad:
Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris (Olympique Lyon), Steve Mandanda(Olympique Marseille), Cedric Carrasso (Girondins Bordeaux)
Defenders: Bacary Sagna (Arsenal), Patrice Evra (Manchester United), William Gallas (Arsenal), Eric Abidal (Barcelona), Sebastien Squillaci (Sevilla), Marc Planus (Girondins Bordeaux), Gael Clichy(Arsenal), Anthony Reveillere (Olympique Lyon)
Midfielders: Alou Diarra(Girondins Bordeaux), Jeremy Toulalan (Olympique Lyon), Florent Malouda (Chelsea), Yoann Gourcuff (Girondins Bordeaux), Abou Diaby (Arsenal), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich)
Forwards: Thierry Henry (Barcelona), Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea), Andre-Pierre Gignac (Toulouse), Sidney Govou (Olympique Lyon), Djibril Cisse (Panathinaikos), Mathieu Valbuena (Olympique Marseille)