Actualités

Luis Ospina, interviewed shortly before his death, recalls a fierce career that applied the lessons of the French New Wave to his work

Jorge Carvalho’s brief documentary is a study of the Colombian documentarist and film-maker Luis Ospina, the founder of the Grupo de Cali; named after his home town of Cali in Colombia, it was an artists’ collective including director Carlos Mayolo and the writer Andrés Caicedo, whose early death at 25 helped make him a legendary figure of Colombian literature. They were formed in radical opposition to what Ospina and others saw as the dullness and complacency of Colombian cinema, and in sympathy with leftist currents in moviemaking after Godard. The Californian-educated Ospina himself displays a classic New Wave reverence for the American masters such as Hawks and Ford, in whose company he includes Jerry Lewis without any hesitation. Ospina and the Grupo de Cali were the subject...

In the late 1950s newly elected President of Brazil Juscelino Kubitscheck ordered the country’s capital be moved from Rio de Janeiro toward a more central location. Thus began Brasilia, a modernist utopia built in the span of a few years and designed to unite people from all walks of life. Except reality didn’t quite live up to that dream. The thousands of workers who helped build the new capital—and the thousands of migrants who sought to move in—ended up segregated in satellite cities the government created to keep Brasilia safe from unwanted “invaders.” Joana Pimenta and Adirley Queirós’ explosive Dry Ground Burning is a portrait of one such places, Ceilândia, and an engrossing homage to a handful of people stranded in its crime-ridden slum of Sol Nascente: a vast canvas, in turns wistful and furious, of what life in Bolsonaro’s Brazil amounts to for those...

Mubi's retrospective, "A Matter of Faith: Three Films by Luis Ospina," is showing November 4 – December 17, 2019. The Vampires of Poverty“My generation was young when George Romero’s The Night of the Living Dead came out,” the Colombian filmmaker Luis Ospina told me last October, at DocLisboa, where he was given a retrospective. “That was a turning-point B-movie for me. It was about zombies and cannibalism, but you could give it a political reading, since it was filmed during the Vietnam War. It taught me that the horror genre, and the myth of Dracula, which is a metaphor of power, could be adapted to other latitudes and social and political contexts.” Born in Cali and educated in film at UCLA, Ospina, who died this past September, transplanted the idea of vampirism to his native country. In the mockumentary short The Vampires of Poverty (1977), which he shot with his friend, Carlos Mayolo,...

The Film Society of Lincoln Center is presenting Neighboring Scenes, a new showcase of contemporary Latin American cinema co- presented with Cinema Tropical. Taking place January 7-10, this selective slate of premieres highlights impressive recent productions from across the region and exhibits the vast breadth of styles, techniques, and approaches employed by Latin American filmmakers today.

Opening the series is Benjamín Naishtat’s "El Movimento," a stark, black-and-white snapshot of anarchy in 19th-century Argentina and follow-up to his acclaimed debut, History of Fear. Other highlights include the 2015 Cannes Caméra d’Or winner, César Augusto Acevedo’s "Land and Shade;" the U.S. premiere of Arturo Ripstein’s" Bleak Street," which has drawn comparisons to Luis Buñuel’s Mexican period; Rodrigo Plá’s Venice Horizons opener "A Monster with a Thousand Heads;" Pablo Larraín’s Silver Bear– winning and Golden Globe-nominated "The Club," which was also Chile’s submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar; and more.

With titles from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, and Mexico, Neighboring Scenes spans a wide geographic range, evidencing the many sites of contemporary Latin American filmmaking. Some of the featured directors are established auteurs, while others have recently emerged on the international festival scene, snagging top prizes and critical accolades at festivals like Cannes, Berlin, Venice, and Locarno.

"El Movimiento"

Dir. Benjamín Naishtat

Argentina, 2015, Dcp, 70m

Spanish with English subtitles

Continuing his preoccupation with violence and Argentina’s past, Benjamín Naishtat (History of Fear, a New Directors/New Films 2014 selection) dramatizes a crucial moment in that nation’s history characterized by political zealotry and terrorism. Pablo Cedrón portrays the fiery, unhinged leader of a mysterious militia (modeled on Confederacy-era dictator Juan Manuel de Rosas’s Mazorca) who wantonly roam the pampas in an effort to “purify” and unite society, killing and plundering settlers along the way. Characters emerge from and disappear into dark expanses—the film is masterfully shot in black and white—heightening its intense, chilling atmosphere. Funded by the Jeonju Digital Project. Thursday, January 7, 7:00pm (Q&A with Benjamín Naishtat)

"Alexfilm"

Dir. Pablo Chavarria Gutiérrez, Mexico, 2015, Dcp, 60m

Spanish with English subtitles

Marked by a light touch and emphasizing openness over conventional, linear narrative, biologist-turned-filmmaker Pablo Chavarria Gutiérrez documents the rhythms of a man awaiting an important event that never comes. As he cooks breakfast, naps, paints, tries on sunglasses, and wanders through different rooms in his home, Chavarria Guitérrez lovingly frames every action in beautiful natural light, allowing each moment to flow to the next while maintaining its own transcendent essence. North American Premiere

Screening with:

"Gulliver"

Dir. María Alche

Argentina, 2015, Dcp, 25m

Spanish with English subtitles

Flawlessly transitioning from a highly naturalistic family tale to something overtly surreal and back again, "Gulliver" captures the circumstances—imagined or not—of one of those evenings when siblings come to a deeper understanding of one another. After hanging out at home with their mom (Martín Rejtman regular Susana Pampin) and older sister Mariela (Agustina Muñoz), Agos and Renzo go to a raging party where Agos ends up drinking too much. Upon stepping outside to recover, the pair wander into a strange but familiar landscape, and begin to ask questions about the world and themselves.

Sunday, January 10, 5:00pm

"Bleak Street" (La calle de la amargura)

Dir. Arturo Ripstein

Mexico/Spain, 2015, Dcp, 99m

Spanish with English subtitles

Based on a true story, the latest feature by Arturo Ripstein is an unflinching look at the mean streets of El Defectuoso. Two prostitutes Adela (Nora Velázquez) and Dora (Patricia Reyes Spíndola) are burdened by horrible marriages and financial problems stemming from their long-departed youth. In an attempt to make ends meet, they drug and rob dwarf twins (Juan Francisco Longoria and Guillermo López)—who themselves barely scrape by as doubles for professional luchadores. Ripstein masterfully contrasts the grittiness of alleyways and seedy apartments with gliding Steadicam cinematography, siding with neither the victims nor the perpetrators. A Leisure Time Features release.

U.S. Premiere Sunday, January 10, 3:00pm

"The Club" (El Club)

Dir. Pablo Larraín, Chile, 2015, Dcp, 98m

Spanish with English subtitles

Pablo Larraín (director of "No" and "Post Mortem") continues to explore the long shadows of Chile’s recent past with this quietly scathing film about the Catholic Church’s concealment of clerical misconduct. Four aging former priests peacefully live out their days together in a dumpy seaside town, focused on training their racing greyhound rather than doing penance for their assorted crimes. Their idyll is shattered when a fifth priest arrives and, confronted by one of his victims, commits suicide. A young priest begins an investigation into the retirees’ pasts, setting off a series of events that call into question faith, piety, and complicity. Winner of the Silver Bear at the 2015 Berlinale and Chile’s Oscar submission. A Music Box Films release.

Sunday, January 10, 9:00pm

"The Gold Bug, or Victoria’s Revenge" (El escarabajo de oro o Victorias Hamnd)

Dir. Alejo Moguillansky & Fia-Stina Sandlund

Argentina/Denmark/Sweden, 2014, Dcp, 102m

Spanish and Swedish with English and Spanish subtitles

Fusing elements of Edgar Allan Poe’s titular short story and Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, Alejo Moguillansky and Fia-Stina Sandlund’s meta-film follows an Argentine-Swedish co-production in Buenos Aires shooting a biopic of the 19th-century realist author and proto-feminist Victoria Benedictsson. After a hustling actor finds a treasure map detailing the location of ancient gold hidden near a town in the Misiones province named after the 19th-century politician Leandro N. Alem, he successfully persuades the producers to reframe the project as a portrait of the radical Alem (swapping feminist politics for anti-Eurocentric ones) and move the production there—so he can better search for the treasure. Fast-paced and hilariously self-reflexive, the film takes a playful approach to texts and history that is reminiscent of Borges.

Thursday, January 7, 9:00pm

"Hopefuls" (Aspirantes)

Dir. Ives Rosenfeld

Brazil, 2015, Dcp, 71m

Portuguese with English subtitles

Focused on the alluring promise of wealth and fame that professional soccer holds for Brazilian youth, Ives Rosenfeld’s directorial debut features a host of excellent performances from its cast. Junior (Ariclenes Barroso) ekes out a living working nights at a warehouse while playing by day in an amateur league with his talented best friend Bento (Sergio Malheiros). When Bento gets signed to a professional team, Junior struggles with his crippling jealousy—which becomes heightened by his pregnant girlfriend and alcoholic uncle. Artfully lensed and deliberately paced, the film silently builds toward a legitimately shocking climax that provides a grim reality check. Sunday, January 10, 7:00pm (Q&A with Ives Rosenfeld)

"It All Started at the End" (Todo comenzó por el fin)

Dir. Luis Ospina

Colombia, 2015, Dcp, 208m

Spanish with English subtitles

Luis Ospina (The Vampire of Poverty, Paper Tiger) turns the camera toward his radical roots—and his own intestines—for this documentary about the Cali Group, the Colombian artists’ collective that revolutionized art, cinema, and literature amid drug-related terrorism in the 1970s and ’80s. Boasting a wide array of never-before-seen archival material, Ospina (the group’s only surviving member, who was diagnosed with cancer during the making of the film) focuses on telling the stories of co-founders Andrés Caicedo and Carlos Mayolo. Never maudlin or self-important, this kaleidoscopic inside view of “Caliwood” is essential viewing for anyone looking for darkly comic, anarchic inspiration. U.S. Premiere

Saturday, January 9, 2:00pm (Q&A with Luis Ospina)

"Ixcanul"

Dir. Jayro Bustamante

Guatemala 2015, Dcp, 93m

Kaqchikel and Spanish with English subtitles

Maria (María Mercedes Coroy) is set to marry a much older foreman at the coffee plantation, but she has a crush on Pepe, who has fanciful dreams of getting rich in the U.S. After consummating their flirtation, Pepe leaves for the States—without Maria, who soon learns she is expecting a baby. A difficult pregnancy assisted only by traditional medicine finally leads her to the hectic big city, but on very grim terms. Shot in collaboration with the Kaqchikel Mayans of Guatemala’s coffee-growing highlands, Jayro Bustamante’s exquisitely shot debut feature (winner of a top prize at the Berlinale and Guatemala’s Oscar submission) explores what tradition and modernity mean for women living in marginalized communities. A Kino Lorber release.

Friday, January 8, 7:00pm

"Land and Shade" (La tierra y la sombra)

Dir. César Augusto Acevedo

Colombia, 2015, Dcp, 94m

Spanish with English subtitles

A poetic and devastating statement on how environmental issues impact every aspect of life, César Augusto Acevedo’s Camera d’Or–winning directorial debut is not to be missed. The elderly Alfonso (Haimer Leal) returns to the small house in Valle del Cauca he left 17 years earlier in order to care for his bedridden son Geraldo (Edison Raigosa), who suffers from a mysterious ailment related to the harsh farming techniques of the sugar-cane plantations around them. Tensions quietly simmer between Alfonso and his ex-wife (the wonderful Hilda Ruiz), but familial ties and pride keep them tied to the land in Acevedo’s meditative and painterly allegory.

Friday, January 8, 9:00pm

"Mar"

Dir. Dominga Sotomayor

Chile, 2014, Dcp, 70m

Spanish with English subtitles

Reminiscent of the films of Josephine Decker and Joe Swanberg, this low-key drama centers on the problems between Martin, aka Mar (Lisandro Rodríguez), and his girlfriend, Eli (Vanina Montes). On vacation in the Argentine resort town of Villa Gesell, conflicts arise concerning expectations and long-term commitments—having a baby, home ownership—but get pushed aside or elided. A visit from Martin’s gregarious, wine- guzzling mother and a random act of God threaten to push the couple to breaking point. Dominga Sotomayor matches her characters’ frustrations with the film’s expert framing, which often obscures faces and bodies, visually emphasizing their mutual misunderstanding.

Saturday, January 9, 6:30pm Q&A with Dominga Sotomayor)

A Monster with a Thousand Heads ( Un monstruo de mil cabezas)

Dir. Rodrigo Plá

Mexico, 2015, Dcp, 74m

Spanish with English subtitles

Developed in tandem with his wife’s novel of the same title, Rodrigo Plá (The Delay, The Zone) crafts another airtight thriller, this time taking on a health-insurance system that prefers profit to adequate medical care. Refused treatment that would alleviate her terminally ill husband’s pain—yet not the frustrations of dealing with maddening bureaucracy—Sonia (Jana Raluy) snaps and, gun in hand, single-mindedly goes up the chain of command with a vengeance. The series of increasingly harrowing provocations are interspersed with moments of dark comedy, and coalesce into a final, shocking climax.

Saturday, January 9, 8:30pm (Q&A with Rodrigo Plá)...