El Viaje de Carol

Carol fights against the conventionalisms found in this new cultural by.....
Not conforming to the social norms usually associated with being a women in a Spain.  When her mother dies, she is forced to live with her aunt, who tries to impose her will on Carol.  Another way she does this is by continuing to try to get letters to her father, who is an American as well, fighting for the "other" side of the Spanish revolution.  Her American background plays a major role in both of these examples.  Many people across the world, have the impression that Americans are hard headed, not willing to change.  While this may be true, it definitely interferes with Carol's ability to adapt to her new culture in Spain. 

The Franco years...what is pretty amazing about Franco and reign of power that he held was that he had absolute power for 40 years.  That is an absurd amount of time for one regime, let alone one person to hold power over an entire country.  He abolishes Parliament, and possibly more damaging, he did away with all political parties (his opposition).  Though not everything that Franco did could be considered bad, he definitely did many things that have hurt Spain even 35 years later.  He suppressed many of the rights of women, especially the right to an education.
Chris Pappas

Volver

Volver

            This film was definitely a tribute to women.  There were some obvious points to this thought, all the main and just about every character was a woman.  A man committed a horrendous act, was killed, stored in a freezer then buried in that same freezer, in a river bed.  The more subtle traits were the strength of all the women portrayed in the movie.  Not to mention that Raimunda was a stunningly attractive woman, who controlled, if not manipulated pretty much everyone she encountered.  But did it with a smile and charm that made you want to do what she said.  Irene, the mother, though in a different way was also a prominent character in the movie.  She reappeared as a caretaker for their aunt, after being believed dead for many years.  After Irene’s sister, Aunt Paula (Raimunda’s aunt) passed she took on the task of caring for Augustina.  A person giving care for others, is a trait of strength.  Their strength through several deaths, including a self defensive killing, nosey neighbors, is blatantly present throughout the movie. 

            An example of tension between superstitious beliefs and real life aspects through the film could be, the thought that dead people in the village return to their loved ones and that the wind make the villagers crazy.  Irene is thought to have perished in a fire then she reveals herself to her daughters.  The wind is mentioned a couple of time throughout the movie.  Large power generating wind turbines are shown during driving scenes, to and from the village to the city.  Aunt Paula is believed to have lost her wits in the years prior to her death, though some of it was actual truth.  Irene did come back to help her in the later part of her life. 

Chris Pappas

Entre Nos

                                                                Chris Pappas

Entre Nos

Admittedly this was a hard movie for me to watch.  Mariana brings her two kids to the US, to reunite with her husband, only to find that he leaves after only two weeks.  Wow, what a piece of work this guy was!  He leaves them with literally nothing to help them survive.  Mariana, though the movie doesn’t say that she is illegal, kind of implies that fact.  She has to do what she can to provide for her kids.  The kids pretty much stayed upbeat, Mariana’s spirit breaks, though she doesn’t show her kids that fear.  That says a lot about her character and strength to press on in the face of an unknown future. The scene where they climb the stairs for a safer place to sleep, was very hard to watch.  That was a coming of age scene for Gaby.  He leaves before his mother and sister awake, going to work, to help provide for his family.  To get over yourself, to pick up everything you’ve known and let it go, accepting that you have to be the provider, was a powerful point to me. 

At the end, when Gaby had to tell his new classmates a little about his summer, you could see the maturation and experience in his voice.  While the other kids did their normal summer routine, he had to help his mother and sister stay alive.  I couldn’t imagine having to sleep outside in New York City, for anything.  I’m not a parent, but this makes you see the lengths a parent must go to keep their kids alive.  Sacrificing themselves and their wellbeing, to provide for their children is the epitome of being a parent.

The Official Story

The Official Story detailed a period when Argentina's military took back control and punished those who participated in communist militia’s and communistic ideas.  Around 11,000 people, from 1978-1983, disappeared for actions they were a part of during the late 1960's and early 1970's. 
Alicia's husband was friends with "The General", who was no doubt a big part of the reason why they adopted Gaby.  We never really find this out in the movie; I actually did a little research to help fill in the gaps that the movie leaves.  By the end, Alicia knows for sure, that her husband was part of the new military government and their supporters.  Through the movie, Alicia becomes increasingly paranoid that her adopted baby belongs to one of the families accused and punished for their part in the movement.  So much so, that it teats her up inside, this is evident by the glazed over stares and the bouts of emotional breakdown.  She can no longer trust her husband, who, by the end, is a mess himself.  The scene where he beat her, hitting her head against the door frame, then smashing her fingers in the door jam, was hard to watch.  You could see that he was ready to hit her, but I did not see the rest of that incident coming.
Overall, this was a powerful movie that depicted how people can be blinded by acts that are seemingly right in their face.  The husband makes this point to Alicia, as she keeps prodding him to reveal more info.  That's pretty much like living with someone who is living a double life; you only see what that person wants you to see. 
Chris Pappas

Like Water For Chocolate

Chris Pappas

Like Water for Chocolate was definitely an interesting movie, much different than what we have seen previously.  The forbidden love aspect that we discussed before the movie was a definite topic.  With the main character, Tita, her mother, and (red headed) sister Gertrudis, all experiencing a different kind of forbiddance.  The message, in my opinion, was one of following your dreams, not allowing anything to come between.  Tita and Pedro were tortured souls throughout the whole movie.  Longing only to be with each other, but the Cinderalla style mother, wouldn’t allow that to happen, even with her death she haunted the ranch.    

Tita’s special power to add her love to the food she prepared was an interesting use of magical realism.  This ability is set in the normal, modern world, with authentic depictions of humans and society.  Her tears in the wedding cake, made everyone feel her pain.  Her explosion of love, with the rose pedals, made everyone leave the table to pleasure themselves, definitely an interesting twist that I didn’t see coming.   

The most unusual tradition had to be the youngest daughter being forced to care for the mother. I have never heard of such a tradition, and frankly, I’m glad for that.  Some of the characters stood out to me.  Though he didn’t play a large role, Sargento Treviño made me laugh every scene he was involved with.  You had to feel bad for the doctor, who put his love out for Tita, she partially reciprocated, that is, until Pedro was around.