25th Annual San Diego Latino Film Festival [2018] - Pt 2

Of the films that recently played at the 25th Annual San Diego Latino Film Festival [2018], I was able to view and review also the following:

Zama ]2017] [IMDb] [FA.es]*[AC.br]*(directed and screenplay by Lucrecia Martel [IMDb] [FA.es]*[AC.br]* based on the celebrated novel [GR] [WCat] [Amzn] by Antonio di Benedetto [es.wikip]*[GR] [WCat] [Amzn] [IMDb]) is a Joseph Conrad "Heart of Darkness" [GR] [wikip] story crossed with Waiting for Godot [GR] [wikip] / Franz Kafka [GR] [GR2] [wikip] about a random mid-level late 18th-century "Official of the (Spanish) Crown" Don Diego de Zama (played in the film by Daniel Giménez Cacho [IMDb] [FA.es]*[AC.br]*) stationed up the Rio de la Plata somewhere near today's Asunción, Paraguay, so basically "At the Edge of the World," WAITING with INCREASING FRUSTRATION for the letter "From the King" to let him return back home.

To get approval for his request, he needs the help of a random "higher up" the local Governor (played by Daniel Veronese [IMDb] [FA.es]* [AC.br]*), who while proving perfectly (and repeatedly) able to make sure that his own (often petty) requests and needs are met, seems NEVER to have the time to first WRITE THE LETTER and then TO SEND IT so that Zama could FINALLY LEAVE AND GO HOME.

So while Zama WAITS, and WAITS, FOR YEARS, he becomes progressively more and more agitated as between the local indigenous people from a totally different culture / tradition than his own (what the heck is HE / THE SPANIARDS doing there at all??), the African slaves (brought there, in chains, by the Spaniards / Portuguese from "down river" to "serve" them) again from a completely different part of the world than that in which he had grown up in (back in Spain) and then an assortment of  increasingly crazy white desperadoes, perhaps epitomized by a notorious but slippery bandit named Vicuña Porto (played by Matheus Nachtergaele [IMDb] [FA.es]*[AC.br]*) he slowly goes crazy.

Will he ever get out of this place?  Should he even keep trying? One feels his pain: Colonialism has its effects even on the Colonizers... -- 3 1/2 Stars

El Condorito [2017] [IMDb] [FA.es]*(directed by Alex Orrelle [IMDb] [FA.es]* and Eduardo Schuldt [IMDb] [FA.es]*, cowritten by Rodrigo Moraes [IMDb], Martín Piroyansky [IMDb] and Ishai Ravid [IMDb]) is a CHILDREN'S ANIMATED FILM, produced in PERU based on the beloved comic [en.wikip] [es.wikip]*[Web.es]*[WebUSA.es]*  by CHILEAN CARTOONIST René Ríos Boettiger or Pepo [es.wikip]*).  At the center of the story is Condorito (voiced by Omar Chaparo [IMDb]) an anthropomorphic condor (who, of course, doesn't realize that he's a condor) living in a random provincial town somewhere in Chile.  He's not a particularly ambitious condor, has a home, takes care of a nephew Coné, but when it comes to work, well, let's just say that he prefers spending his afternoons playing soccer on the local pitch for the local team and then hanging out with his buddies at the typical local southern South American bar afterwards (complete with plastic chairs, and an espresso machine along with with assortment of spirits behind the bar).

It wouldn't be a bad life, 'cept that he does have a love interest, the beautiful and with a heart of gold Yayita (voided by Jessica Cediel), who'd like him, of course, to be more serious / responsible.  More to the point, she has a mother, the not rich but certainly imposing Doña Tremebunda (voiced by Coco Legrand), who if all went well would become his future suegra / mother-in-law.  However, she, of course, believes that her lovely, talented and kind daughter could do SO MUCH BETTER than a shifty, not particularly bright, lackadaisical _condor_ ;-).

Well all this makes for a fun / intriguing set-up for a story already, BUT ... this is a cartoon!  SOO ... while poor Condorito is trying, for the sake of his novia (girlfriend), to impress his perhaps one day future mother-in-law on her (future-mother-in-law's) birthday -- honestly, if you've ever been there, and most of us have, it's hard buying a perfect gift / planning a perfect evening for someone who doesn't particularly like you... -- She, the imposing Doña Tremebunda, gets abducted by random octupus-looking space aliens (!) ;-), led by a would-be megalomaniacal leader called Molusco (yes Mollusk) (voiced by Jey Mammon), who ... see in her imposing stature someone to be reckoned with (a worthy hostage perhaps even Earthling leader), while "poor Condorito" (the evening hadn't been going well ...) would AT LEAST IN PART, honestly, be happy "to have gotten rid of her ..." ;-).

But, well, his love interest Yayita, really would like her mother back ... ;-) ... SO ... Condorito along with his nephew Coné set out to fight these space aliens, bring back Doña Tremebunda and arguably save the world in the process ... Much ... ensues ;-)

Among that which ensues, evokes ALL KINDS of popular films from Indiana Jones, to Star Wars, to Despicable Me.

Yes, I do believe that a fair number of North American viewers would not particularly appreciate the rather sexist portrayal of the women in the story, from the "heart of gold" Yayita to her quite imposing mother.  Yet, especially when it comes to the mother-in-law, these are fundamental relationships -- where a mother _is_ generally going to defend the perceived interests of her adult children.  That's what mothers do ;-).  And yet, on the other side of the stick, the mother-in-law can be perceived as an annoying / fearsome / imposing figure.   Anyway, it makes for a fun story -- 3 1/2 Stars


<< NOTE - Do you like what you've been reading here?  If you do then consider giving a small donation to this Blog (sugg. $6 _non-recurring_) _every so often_ to continue/further its operation.  To donate just CLICK HERE.  Thank you! :-) >>