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jruvira
Reviews
Rancho aparte (2007)
A long awaited homage to rural life
Is 'Rancho aparte' a comedy? Yes, it is. A ridiculously funny movie to see. Is 'Rancho aparte' a drama? It also is. Will it make you cry? I don't think so, but 'Rancho aparte' will make you wonder who's right and who's not.
I'm really tired to watch Argentine movies based in Buenos Aires. Even movies located far away from the country's capital have a 'porteño' idiosyncrasy. I remember watching "La ciénaga", located in Salta but the main characters speaking in Buenos Aires' accent. 'Rancho aparte' is performed by Buenos Aires actors, but they took the basic courtesy of learning the accent of rural San Luis, a not-so-geographically-remote Argentine province. That simple detail is, for me, a great homage to the people the movie's characters represent. That's respect.
'Rancho aparte' features an almost unbearable crash between modern-urban life and the not-so-visible lives of those who live in extreme material poverty on the countryside, far away from comfort, technology and the public eye. We never hear of them in the news but for catastrophic rains, floods of draughts. We're never told who they are, and even then we share the same nationality. When you hear the term "argentino" in Buenos Aires media, you must understand "porteño", for being Argentine is a little more complex than that.
Having said that, this movie's point is to leave you wondering who's right when, in fact, they're both right and they're both wrong. Or maybe nobody has a definite answer: there's no need to be right or wrong all the time. The grey spots of life.
What would you think about someone who, being able to push a button and turn on a light bulb for the first time, prefers to stick to his old -but known to be a certain way to light up a room- candle? Would you think that person is an animal, would you say he is culturally behind you? The candle works for this man, why should he choose the light bulb, something he didn't know he needed? It's funny to see ancient empires documentaries: the luxury, the comfort, the pleasures of those big cities. They had no cars, no toilets, no mobile phones, no freezers, but they lived to the top of comfort of their time. Our grandsons will laugh and won't believe the uncomfortable way we currently live in... Who will be right then? Us or them?
'Rancho aparte' will, for the open-hearted, propose a chance to put things you now give for granted, at doubt. Should movies be able to change the world, this would be a good starting point towards cultural integration and common identity. We all share the basics, it's our environment what builds the differences.
The technical aspects are generally well crafted. Artistically, the performances are exquisite -especially so for the female characters. You don't need to know this movie is based on a theatrical play beforehand: you notice it just a few minutes after the beginning. Luckily, the language is not theatrical, what gives more credibility to the movie: you feel you're spying on them rather than sitting in front of a stage.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
XXY (2007)
Choices
I wouldn't like to include spoilers, but what follows may give you some hints. Sorry.
Some questions that may help you choose to watch this movie or not -especially when you haven't seen the trailers before (as is usually my case): - Are you open minded enough? - Are you able to feel empathy with any confused human being? - Do you think that, when facing a choice, you may choose and you may not choose at all?
XXY depicts a universal part of our lives: the discovery of our own sexuality. What's so particular here is that Alex is given more choices, and none falls into any categorization whatsoever. I mean, she/he may not be homosexual if she/he chooses girls as her/his primary object of desire. She/he may also choose men, and she/he wouldn't be gay at all!
There are some shocking scenes (don't choose this movie for a romantic evening!), nothing unbearable for an open-minded viewer. In fact, you'll see them with a smile if you don't expect them. You'll say "of course, Alex is really able to do that... I hadn't noticed!".
And the ending is, in my personal point of view, exactly the way that situation may be resolved. May be complex for many people, but for me it's just perfect.
Technically, sound is extremely awful. It reminds me of the movies Lucía Puenzo's father used to do: back in the eighties, most Argentinean movies had a really bad sound treatment. Maybe her father paid some assistance in that topic... being Argentine myself, I left subtitles on just in case I missed something. And they proved to be very helpful. The set up is pretty "fairy-taley" for my taste: it makes you feel characters like Alex are only allowed to exist, isolated, in remote, far far away places. It resembles, somewhat, to Pan's Labyrinth's atmosphere (it's just a resemblance, XXY has nothing to do with Pan's Labyrinth... don't go and watch it after XXY). I don't mean this story should be located inside a metropolitan environment, but suburban at least. Would help us see Alex just like the girl/boy next door.
XXY is a pleasant and moving experience. I hope you all enjoy it as I did.
El custodio (2006)
Psychologic thriller
Do you enjoy being transported to the scene? If you answer 'yes, I like to be transported to -say- Wonderland', then you should go somewhere else. This movie develops in the painful, ordinary, real world. Most people will find this movie annoying and somewhat boring. Some of us will regard it as an experience on its own. Rubén's some minister's minder, a bodyguard. His own life must leave room, be replaced by minister's. His life revolves around the minister, must follow him everywhere he goes, must wait for him while he's at work. Does nothing but waiting for him, reminding us of some kind of dog provided with some sort of self-awareness, feeling how left aside he is. His life's worth nothing. And that's where the point of the movie is. The goal is to make you experience his life, to share a piece of such empty existence. Julio Chávez (Rubén, the bodyguard) is a superb actor. I'm impressed by his ability to perform with everything except words. He doesn't need to talk to transmit feelings. And I've recently seen him on stage performing a word-based comedy, and he proved -to me- to be extremely ductile and flexible. He uses every "tool" available for his performance. You're warned. This movie deserves a 9 out of 10 for performance, 9 out of 10 in terms of psychological study. The only thing I didn't like is the final twist of the story. The rest is quite enjoyable. Julio Chávez... you're awesome!
Tiempo de valientes (2005)
Would give it a 7, would like to give it a 10...
Should this be an American movie I'd rate it 7: we've seen this before. Being this an Argentinean movie, and being myself Argentine, I'd like to give it a 10, since it's the kind of quality I'd been hoping -rather than expecting- for. It's superb quality is astonishing, given all the limitations imposed by the 3rd World...
I can't forget the scene when Díaz forces Silverstein's fiancé to confess -you know what I mean if you saw the movie. I think that's the key moment of the movie, not surprising maybe, yet original. That's when the real action begins.
Before watching a movie I always try to gather some previous information. Being this a mainstream, satyric, commercial one, I press "Play" and make a suspension of reality and logic, I'd say the best state of mind to enjoy movies like this. It's impossible to discuss the plausibility of the whole plot, yet it's believable in a certain way. As for me, I couldn't stop laughing at every single joke and commentary -"sos malo" ("you're mean")... put in the mouth of Díaz, the greatest one.
I'm rather tired of seeing movies "designed for" Peretti. I know he's a superb actor, but sometimes I feel his roles unfairly opaque the rest, Luis Luque's role in this case. I'm not very fond of Argentine television, so I haven't seen much work from Luque, but it's pretty obvious that he's an excellent performer. His physical role, his stares, his content attitude in this movie made me fall in love with his performance. I think his role should need some upgrading, just to let him show us how great he can be!
I don't know whether Szifrón is planning to make a sequel or not. I know he won't make it if it's to follow the rule that "second parts were never good", so if he makes it, I'll surely go see it. And I hope that, in the future, takes into account the possibility to give Peretti's counterparts the same chances to develop their roles.
Great movie, great performances, and lots of laughs!