Returning for its 27th edition in 2021 is Manchester’s largest celebration of Spanish and Latin American culture. ¡Viva! will take place from Friday 6 until Sunday 22 August at its usual venue of HOME on First Street. The focus is on film – and the specially curated programme features 18 titles, including eleven UK cinema premieres.
There will movies from many different genres, made by both established filmmakers and trailblazing newcomers. All have English subtitles and will be shown without adverts or trailers. Below, are the five that look the most intriguing. Tickets are on general sale now – so be sure to snap yours up while you can.
There’s a trio of dramas from Chile on at this year’s festival, including this up-beat romance. It breaks new ground in the country’s cinema history, being a same-sex love story. For a few weeks one winter, Lucas visits his sister in a remote fishing port, en route to starting a new life abroad. Here, he begins an affair with Antonio, a local fisherman with deep roots in the area. The relationship highlights their differences in terms of class and attitude.
Sara is offered the chance to buy a flat with spectacular views of Seville but there’s just one snag: Lola, the flamboyant septuagenarian current owner, will remain living in it until she dies. Lola is in very poor health, having had two heart bypasses, so how long will Sara have to wait? The two very different women form an unlikely friendship filled with tenderness and laughter, in what is ultimately a celebration of life.
This preview screening presents Mexican auteur Michel Franco’s provocative depiction of class warfare in his home country. A dystopian drama, it centres on a swanky wedding which is invaded by rioters who turn out to be part of a nationwide uprising. The winner of the 2020 Venice Film Festival’s Grand Jury Prize, it has been likened to 2019’s Academy Award Best Picture winner, Parasite. The film is introduced by Jason Wood, author of the newly published The Faber Book of Mexican Cinema.
This social drama, filled with action and suspense, explores the changing times in Bolivia. La Paz taxi driver Julián is scavenging for extra cash to pay for his brother’s surgery. After picking up a customer who’s new in town, he seizes the chance to assume his identity, and his well-paid career but he’s plunged into a murky world of extremist politics and violence. The film explores the themes of corruption, concealed truths, and ambiguous morality.
www.homemcr.org
- Words:
- A. James Simpkin
- Published on:
- Wed 4 Aug 2021
The titular character, Mosh, is a 16-year-old dancer who lives in a poor neighbourhood in the Dominican Republic. Her mother’s health is worsening, and her cousin gets involved with some very dangerous people – but an unexpected visit changes the family’s fortunes, and things take a surreal turn. Tackling serious topics but eschewing gritty realism, the film uses colour, music, and movement to tell a story that is in turns tense, poignant, and funny.