MikePadgett.com

Machuca

— Beautifully shot historical drama that can't quite connect the small story with the big one.”

• Director: Andrés Wood
• Chile, 2004
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The Machuca of the title is a young boy from a poor family who ends up in a public school that’s riding the high crest of a socialist wave sweeping over Chile. Pedro Machuca’s friendship with middle-class classmate Gustavo Infante is the main subject matter, with historical events looming large over the boys like the rainclouds that characterise the film’s outdoor scenes.

The events in question took place in the early 1970s, the era of Salvador Allende’s struggle for a socialist redistribution of wealth ending in Pinochet’s coup and accession. Wood lived this era at a similar age to that of Pedro and Gustavo and many scenes are appropriately hazy, shot from low angles to reflect the children’s point of view.

Whilst the photography is first-rate, the acting (non-professional in some cases) tends to be somewhat unemotive. As such, the human relationships feel underplayed, leaving the dramatic potential of the film unrealised at key moments.