Obviously you want to like a film made in Bolivia that’s won a prize at BAFICI for best Latin American Film, that’s reached Montevideo, that sounds enticing. A reworking of the Theseus myth, set in the La Paz underworld. With larger-than-life characters, amazing locations, set against the backdrop of the Andes. If Averno does one thing, it affirms the photogenic possibilities of the Bolivian capital. Unfortunately, it doesn’t do much more, and ends up being a slightly tame, sub-Potter offering which isn’t nearly as bizarre as it perhaps likes to think it is. You can see Loayza’s intentions, to make a snappy, commercial film, something which is never easy to pull off. Perhaps it’s aimed at a younger demographic than mine, but Averno never lived up to its beguiling premise and I came out of the cinema feeling none the wiser about Bolivian society. Plenty of colour and an excess of Andino tropes, but a narrative that didn’t go anywhere left me longing for the Minatour to put Theseus out of his misery.
No comments:
Post a Comment