Sunday, August 30, 2009

La Rabia


Very interesting film by Albertina Carri that definitively is art cinema with great slowish pace that allows full contemplation, some truly amazing Pampa photography, great bare setting in an Argentinean Hacienda and good actor’s performances that totally convince that neighbors are not always welcome to your life and if you do so, take responsibility for the consequences.

Produced by Pablo Trapero (director of great Leonera), the story written also by Carri tells about a mute little girl, Nati, that has her life upside down because she has seen her mother having sex with the neighbor. Nati tells us the story with her drawings that become quite interesting animated inkblot drawings; when the drawings are animated they tell what the girl saw and what will come next. Some call the story an erotic tale, probably because Nati’s mother and the neighbor have raw and noisy sex; but I found nothing erotic, as I tend to believe that their sex is violent just as everything else that happens in the story. But violence is raw and very similar to life in the country of many Latin American countries.

Be aware that if you have not experienced life in remote areas where animals live and die just as humans, you could be offended by the use in this film of unfaked animal deaths. By the way La Rabia means “the rage”, but here is the name of the sleepy village and is also what all the characters feel at one moment in the story.

I found many scenes similar to what I have seen in Carlos Reygadas movies, including the use of fix and/or slow panning camera to capture nature at its best. These scenes make the film breathtaking. But I found one key difference; in Reygadas movies I can’t guess the story, while in Carri’s film I guessed the story right quite early. Still it was a pleasure watching the great tech specs of the film.

The movie was screened at the 2008 Belinale in the Panorama Special section and traveled the festival circuit where was honored with nominations and awards, including winning Best Director in the 2008 Havana Latin American fest and the FIPRESCI Prize at the 2008 Transilvania fest.

I know that this film is not for all audiences not only because is art, but also because the animals that are killed and the raw/noisy sex scenes; but I do recommend the movie as an excellent example of the new wave of Latin American art cinema.

Definitively this is one female director that I'll try to see more of her work.

Enjoy!!!

Watch trailer @ Movie On Companion

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