Rating of
3.5/4
Everyman's crime.
memento_mori - wrote on 12/03/13
This film was screening at a film festival near where I live, and for a long time I was considering going to see the film.
Well, freak occurrences seem to be a good thing in this case, because Potosí is phenomenal.
From the opening slide to the closing whisper, this film will spectacle you with pretty much everything that's bad about humanity.
It's inspiring to know the fact that this is a cinematic debut, and it works so well. The lighting and framework are simply perfect.
So many excellent recurring motifs oppose and combine throughout the story. Light and darkness, frustration and tranquility, anger and forgiveness, corruption and justice, deterioration and restoration, noise and silence. Jaw-dropping work in every single scene.
The way it is shot and cut makes it look more like a painting of everything that is improper or broken in us. Very reminiscent of a Jean-Luc Godard film sometimes, especially during the excellent scenes where someone is talking, or someone is not talking at all. The fates of these characters, as well as the opening and ending are very well-rounded, combining in a great climax.
This is also a very violent movie, since one of its central focuses is the mob war in Mexico, but this aspect of the film is displayed in such a visceral, careful and crucial manner, that it at times becomes shocking and frightening to look at.
I have seen films that are much more violent than this one, with way more gunfire and combat, but Potosí truly hit me like I have never seen violence institutionalized in film, maybe ever.
The acting in this film is equally stunning, as every actor sublimely showcases the true human horror and suffering of these fragile and incredibly grounded characters. Especially the women in the film gave great performances, honestly displaying mothers in shell-shock.
The screenplay takes its time, giving every minor character special attention, even the observant goat herder, who doesn't say a single word for the first thirty minutes.
This movie had me on a hook of suspense and awe, making me marvel at its humane, yet very philosophical characters.
It holds a standard of extreme greatness in regards to human emotion and error, the war on crime, curiosity, inner suffering and the immoral crime that life itself can sometimes be.
