The Spanish Culture Centre in Cairo (Cervantes) hosts the Ecuadorian film week, which kicks off today and lasts through Friday. The mini-festival showcases some of Ecuador’s most famous hits of the past few years, ranging from media satires, social romances, faith-based dramas and historical epics.
The festival opens with “1809-1810: Before Dawn. Camilo Luzuriaga’s historical melodrama is set in Ecuador during the early 1800s. When a young librarian in love forms a connection to the independence movement against the Spanish Empire, he gets swept up into revolution and tragedy.
Viviana Cordero’s “A Titan in the Ring is set in small village in the Andean Mountains of Ecuador. The villagers look forward to the wrestling matches held at the village tent coliseum every Saturday. A young priest, Father David, arrives in town and is greeted with skepticism by the adults but the children are drawn to him, including Martin who dreams of becoming a masked wrestling champion. But a wrestler named Argonaut dominates the ring. The village favorite, La Bestia Loca, challenges him and the night of the fight brings the village turns into a series of devastating events that will change the village forever.
Sebastian Cordero’s “Chronics is a suspenseful media satire that questions who the true monster is: the criminal, the media, or society? When Manolo Bonilla, star of a sensationalistic Miami news show, travels to the Ecuadorian coastal village of Babahoyo to cover the story of a serial killer, his personal ambition gets out of hand and his pursuit of a glory carries tragic consequences.
Tania Hermida’s “How Much More is a thoughtful, evocative portrayal of Ecuador, friendship, love, longing and the static nature of life. The film revolves around Esperanza, a Spanish tourist coming to Ecuador looking for picturesque landscapes and a third world adventure.
Meanwhile, Tristeza is an Ecuadorian university student who cynical and sick of her country s picturesque qualities. After a transit strike leaves them stranded in the largely deserted countryside, they set off hitchhiking. The sudden appearance of a man, who is carrying the ashes of his recently deceased grandmother, alters the course and meaning of their journey.
Victor Arregui’s “Outider centers on Juan, a lower-class young man from Ecuador who dreams of emigrating. He gathers some cash to transform his dream into reality but ends up involved in criminal activity, pushed by desperation and the social, economic and moral collapse of his environment.
Spanish Cultural Center (Instituto Cervantes), 20 Boulos Hana St., Dokki, Giza. Tel: (02) 3760 1746. Admission is free. All films are accompanied by English subtitles.
