Now! Is happening what everyone was raving about (well... sort of), is being explained why Valparaíso has that glamourous touch to its name ... No, it is not the number of dogs and the equivalent amount of their shit, and no, neither is it the longish pavo (strike) of more or less everyone, but most specifically, the garbage people... lots of dogs and the garbage of a couple of days piling up... imagine the scenery.. the merciless slaughering of helpless plastic bags, the cold-blooded fights, and the voracious feasting...
well. now stop imagining that.
What is happening is : Sun! You CAN go to the beach! Festivals!
to be precise, there is the Festival de Teatro Container (I have no idea... they do use containers though... it's not for the claustrophobic)
Initially, my attempts at enjoying a movie at the famous Viña Festival Internacional de Cine(at least I was told it is famous in Latinamerica) were constantly thwarted.
The first movie was screened at an incredibly impressive movie theatre at one of the richer universities here in Valparaiso (there are about... 4? 6?). Unfortunately, the projection was so bad that La Nana was almost unintellegible and several times sound and/or image broke off altogether. (Nevertheless, I think it was the most brilliant and impressive film of the lot, see what this blogg had found out about it (in German))
At night of the same day, I tried to watch an Iranian movie with my roommate, about girls who are trying to smuggle themselves into a stadium to support their team. In Iran. Disguised as men. Sport as subversion and kumbayah, the usual, you know, at least I think that was the message because 15 minutes into the movie, the DVD got stuck and that was that.
Then, all three of us wanted to watch a movie, but due to “?” the schedule changed and that thing that was screened was so terribly bad that we had to leave the movie theatre. I don't remember ever doing that except once, watching “The Lamey” with a group of friends - and in retrospect, I think we were wrong and that TL was probably a brilliant movie! Anyway, but THIS was the worst movie ever! There was just nothing to be said for it, it sucked from bad actors, bad aesthetics, bad lighting, TERRIBLE sound to annoying and boring script - a lamely paced, aimlessly tinkering lost-son-comes-home, then turning unannouncedly into an incest story, but loosing the potential momentum immediately. I know it sounds kind of interesting when you see it in writing, but believe me, no! Ed Wood could do way better.
After the rocky beginning of these experiences, things changed for the better and for screenings and movies movie unhampered by unjumped technical hurdles. The Argentinian movie No mires para abajo : a gorgeous girl teaches gorgeous guy how to be the world's best lover. The guy starts out somnabulic and mourning his dead father but that somehow gets lost in the act... . Lots of nakedness and every single picture and set and color is beautiful, bursting of aesthetic will, some funny dialogue.
The wildly praised "El secreto de sus ojos" was good, but as mentioned, wildly praised, and my high expectations, combined with struggling to understand Argentinian lingo ruined it a bit for me. Nevertheless: funny, beautiful images (almost too lascivious) and a taxing script.
Before that, a subtle sweet little Chilean film "La Navidad", which I liked until they had to insert a threesome - of course in the "bad" way (bad for me) - but at least it had a narrative purpose: 18-year-old girl and guy, not together but in sexual relations, spend Christmas together in a godforsaken house in the country. They encounter a 15-year-old runaway looking for her father, take care of her, she for them, alcohol and a stranded puppy are thrown in, at one point there is the threesome, and then the girl leaves to find and acknowledge her Argentinian lesbian adventure.
(Uhm. No one was planning on watching this movie, I hope...?)
anyway, cinema is good! culture is good! Did I mention the sun! Did I mention my excitement over recently discovered fruit cycles? - after strawberries, it seems we are nearing peaches, cherries and corn... yummy...
ps:
Is anyone doing this one-entry-a-day-thing? (see how quickly I catch up with things...)
pps: I get back to the blog-linking thing once I figured out how to actually do it...
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