Sin nombre (Mex-US, 2009)

I enjoyed this rather conventional take on migration and gangs, conventional in its narrative drive but unusual in its focus on Central America. There are two strands to the narrative: Sayra is trying to get to USA via Mexico and Caspar, who falls out with his gang leader; the two threads entwine as he tries [...]

Strawberry and Chocolate (Fresa y chocolate, Cuba-Mexico-Spain-USA, 1994)

This is Tomás Gutiérrez Alea‘s penultimate film (co-directed with Juan Carlos Tabío); he’s famous for Memories of Underdevelopment (Cuba, 1968). Strawberry and Chocolate focuses on the relationship between the gay Diego and straight, and staunch ‘communist’, David who’s initially spying on him. It’s a marvellously engaging drama, primarily because of Jorge Perugorría‘s superb performance as [...]

The Secrets in Their Eyes (El secreto de sus ojos, Argentina-Spain, 2009)

This Oscar winner needs knowledge of Argentina in the 1970s, a CIA backed military dictatorship, to make full sense of it but I suspect it’s tale of underdogs taking on the system for justice would entertain anyway. There are some excellent set pieces – such as the one above where our protagonists meet their prey [...]

La Zona (Mexico, 2007)

Whilst this film may go through the steps by ‘the numbers’ (a fancy way of saying it’s a bit predictable) it is bang up to date in its take on gated communities and private security. It’s so formulaic that a crucial plot point, where the bourgeoise boy befriends the ‘slumdog’ fugitive, is not even played [...]

Los olvidados (The Forgotten Ones, Mexico, 1950)

This is a fascinating film as it’s obviously heavily influenced by neo realism however it was made by a renown surrealist, Luis Bunuel. How to square the two, apparently, disparate forms? Like his (neo realist) Italian counterparts, Bunuel shoots on location ,however he uses professional actors. Also, similarly, we are offered a ‘slice of life’ [...]

Blue Eyelids (Párpados azules, Mexico, 2007)

It’s good to see films about the marginalised in cinema. In this case the characters are, I suspect, hardly at the margins in society though they are in cinema: the lonely. If lonely people are to be portrayed then we should be able to sympathise with them, however the protagonists of this film are so [...]

Blindness (Canada-Brazil-Japan, 2008)

A Lord of the Flies for the 21st century. This harrowing film , based on Nobel prize winner Jose Saramago’s novel, investigates what happens if everybody goes blind. The first sufferers are interned in an old hospital and the main section of the film investigates the dynamics of what might happen. The film is science [...]

And Your Mother Too (Y tu mamá también, Mexico, 2001)

Director: Alfonso Cuaron Producers: Jorge Vergara and Alfonso Cuaron Screenplay: Carlos Cuaron and Alfonso Cuaron Director of Photography: Emmanuel Lubezki Editors: Alfonso Cuaron and Alex Rodriquez Production Designer: Miguel Angel Alvarez Cast: Maribel Verdu, Gael Garcia Bernal, Diego Luna While the Mexican film establishment disapproved of Y tu mama tambien, they nominated Violet Perfumes (Nadie [...]

The Adventures of Juan Quin Quin (Cuba, 1967)

This is bonkers: from the ‘spaghetti western’ opening to the keystone cops chases. We see Christ on the cross announcing, just after dying, that there’ll be another performance later. It’s fascinating to see ‘swinging sixties’ ‘anything goes’ aesthetics recycled in Castro’s Cuba even if it’s often difficult to work out what’s going. Roy’s done the [...]

Battle in Heaven (Mexico, 2005)

A scandal at Cannes; was it because of the hardcore sex (getting passe in arthouse cinema?) or the fact that 2/3rds of the participants are grossly overweight and old. Well whatever it was didn’t work for me and the knowledge that the cast were amateurs cast a moral question over the film. Exploited? Maybe. (DVD) [...]