AFI LATIN AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAL

Hola, amigas.  Par favor.  Habla espanol?  Afraid not.   Although after seeing 13 films (thus far) at the AFI Latin American Film Festival in Silver Spring, Md., you would think I would be fluent in the language by now.  Alas,
I ain't, but at the same time I must say I'm getting more comfortable listening to Spanish while reading the English subtitles.
The festival started on September 22 and by the time it ends (Oct 8) over 40 films will have been shown.  I bought a 'pase especial' which gives me priority access to all the films.  It costs a mere $100 (for AFI members of which I am one) and if I were to attend each and every film during the festival, it would be worth over $400.
Such a deal.  Of course, I hardly expect to see all 40 films and will probably see about 15 all told.  Further,
most of the films have been shown in the renovated Silver theatre (built in 1938) that seats 700 and I don't think there have been more than 50 people in the theatre for any film I've seen since opening night when all seats were taken.
The festival opened with a terrific documentary from Mexico called THE MEXICAN SUITCASE which was about a suitcase holding over 4,500 photo negatives, the work of 3 young European photographers, that were taken during the Spanish Civil War.  The suitcase was found in an apartment closet in Mexico City  in 2007. The film deals with not only the mystery of how the suitcase was found but also with the living history of people affected by the civil war.  This is yet another brilliantly put together documentary film and it deserves to be seen by a wide audience.
Of the many films I've seen two stand out as my favorites.  The first is a delightful romantic comedy from Argentina called MEDIANERAS which is about a couple that live in buildings across from each other and keep just missing each other on the street.  You just know these 2 lonely-hearts - one a newly single architect who pays her rent designing store windows, the other a web designer who spends most of his time in front of his pc monitor making dates with gals online that he has no intention of keeping - will eventually meet but the getting there is a delight and the 2 leads are irresistible.  Stay for the closing credits when they lip sync the great r&b oldie, "Aint No Mountain High Enough".
My second favorite film is from Mexico called THE GOOD HERBS, in essence about a mother-daughter relationship.  The mother studies herbal remedies and believes that they can heal not just the body but the soul as well.  The daughter, a new-age hippie, must put her life on hold to care for her mother when the latter is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and begins to deteriorate rapidly.  Incredible cinematography, beautifully written and acted, I can't recommend this film enough.
Another film that I enjoyed and touched my heart, also from Mexico, is called ABEL, about a young boy who has refused to talk since his father walked out on him, his mother, teenage sister and baby brother 2 years earlier and has been in a psychiatric hospital when the film opens.  He returns home and suddenly begins talking again, but in the voice of an adult, the man of the house.  A box office sensation in Mexico, it was showcased at this year's Sundance Film Festival and deserves a distributor for viewing in USA.
I also enjoyed a documentary from Panama which gives a revealing look into the lives of wealthy families there and those they employ as maids.  I wish it was longer than the 64 minutes it ran because it was poignant and very, very funny.
Another film, Brazilian made and the biggest earner in that country's cinema history, is about police and political corruption in Rio de Janiero, a sequel entitled ELITE SQUAD 2: THE  ENEMY WITHIN.  Pulsating, suspenseful and beautifully acted, it was also shown at this year's Sundance Festival.  A dynamite movie.
Another terrific film from Brazil was about how 2 high school aged brothers deal with their parents' separation and their father coming out of the closet and taking a male partner.  This could have been maudlin and forgettable but the husband/wife writer/director team makes it funny, tender and warm.  A film to be embraced called THE BEST THINGS IN  THE WORLD.
The last film I'll mention is from Portugal called MYSTERIES OF LISBON.  Originally shown in six one-hour segments on TV there, it has been cut to 4 hours and 30 minutes (with a 20 minute intermission) for viewing in American theatres.  It shows because I felt I needed a scorecard to keep up with all the characters and their
'mishegas'.  About a boy who grows up in an orphanage in 19th century Europe and spends a lifetime unraveling the story of his parents covering over 3 decades.  The film maker, Raul Rulz, is well known throughout Latin America and recently died, probably as much from making this incredibly long film as from old age.
The festival concludes on Oct. 8 with the appearance of Mexican filmmaker Gerardo Naranjo and the screening of his latest film, MISS BALA which was shown at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.  Washington Post film critic Ann Hornaday has raved about this film and I am looking forward to seeing it.
I've also seen films from Columbia, Peru, Ecuador, Guatemala, El Salvador, Chile and Venezuela,  some very good and some not so good.
Just to take a break from all the Spanish language films, I took in MONEYBALL with Brad Pitt and enjoyed it, although like the game itself (baseball), I found it to be a tad boring.  Pitt gives another terrific performance and if he doesn't get an Oscar nom for TREE OF LIFE, he surely will get one for this film.
One last comment I'll make about the Spanish language films I've seen thus far at the festival has to do with the lasting impression of seeing people brush their teeth.  In just about every film one character or several are shown in the bathroom (or kitchen) brushing their God damn teeth.  I kept looking to see if a tube of Colgate or Crest was gonna show up as so often happens in American made films (product placement, don't ya know).
On that note, I'll close for now and say, 'Adios, amigo'.