Steven K
When a young traveler from Lima by way of Siemens Perú finds himself stranded in the mountain village of Manayaycuna during its religious festivities, a faith like many in New World Hispania melding indigenous rites with Catholic law, he becomes entangled in a web of odd traditions and carnal temptation not seen on the Discovery Channel. That temptation is a shy, songful, very pretty girl on the cusp of womanhood named Madeinusa Machuca, chosen by elders to play the Immaculate Virgin in the town's series of processions, an honor resented by her bossy younger sister but delighting her dad, the mayor, who, during "Holy Time" when God is dead and sins are not seen, hopes to deflower his first born, a plan that hinges on detaining the handsome intruder who's no designs on the daughter but has not the foresight to see the trouble ahead.
Directed and written by Claudia Llosa (b. Lima), it's a beautiful movie in many respects, beginning with the title character. The face of a model, voice of a child and soul of a saint, most of the way, Made starts things off when she opens her box of "things," charms and momentos (most prized, the ear-rings of a mother long gone) kept to keep the cold out and dreams in, reminiscent of Scout's version in Mockingbird (62). Just as beautiful are the majestic views of Madeinusa's Andean mountain setting (See; The-Searchers), in the warm season, of course, framed by the hands of camera man Raúl Pérez Ureta who, along with Claudia (s/p) (+ Fipresci, Havana, Mar del Plata) would win the Cine Ceará trophy for their work. The town itself, austere, colorful in its preparations, lacks modern conveniences but gives us a rare, authentic glimpse into a world largely free of commercialism and its waste, virgin territory in more ways than one, i.e., no ATT or Pepsi. In other respects it's quite ugly, this simple, rat infested, male dominated enclave, its foul features as captivating as the beautiful ones, where newcomers are plague and addendum (sin-free zone) is attached to Rome's code, permiting excess revelry and deviants their day: the dead disrespected (corpse), daughters defiled, prized property stolen (pig) with impunity (men pigs), prostitutes paraded for the chieftans but not for "gringo(s) (racism)." The actors, mostly unknowns, perform to perfection: Magaly Solier stars in the title role (b. Huanta) (Made: "I saw my name on your shirt; Sal: It's not a name; Made: It's my name"); Carlos de la Torre co-stars as the newcomer, Salvador Ariendi ("What a **** town!"); Juan Ubaldo Huamán bravely plays abusive father and the mayor who is quite capable, while Yiliana Chong is the angry sister who spews venom like she's forty. To the ending, I deny it, because I don't believe it, an abrupt character reversal (Contact) of a girl who long understood hardship and loss yet had maintained her hope. Why did the maker do it? Shock value (Vertigo), today's never ending push to empowerment, no matter the cost, or sought to placate those she expected to be offended by the first coupling with a human sacrifice. But I'm going to take Father Obosi's advice to Carmela Soprano (Amour Fou): "try to live on the good." Yet, I am compelled to order contrition: ten Hail Marys, three Our Fathers and dock it one star (3★/4).
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
08/29/23
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Audience Member
Steeped in an isolated Peruvian village that may or may not exist, the film feels more mythological than actual. The claustrophobia, grinding poverty, superstition, relentless diagetic music, and often surreal imagery with a descent into madness is a wicked brew. It's patient and sneaky. Story details are opaque, often rendered off screen. Who are these actors!? Shades of Bunuel. Unique, difficult, marvelous.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/24/23
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Audience Member
Wow, ahora veo que gran escritora es Claudia Llosa. No esperaba tanta profundidad, ya que vi La Teta Asustada primero que esta, Madeinusa es una historia con problemas que sobrepasan las fronteras geograficas y culturales.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/07/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Como documento antropológico, Madeinusa (2006) funciona mucho, incluso si no ha sido ese el principal objetivo de su realizadora, Claudia Llosa. De hecho, su película me pareció más interesante a ese nivel que su historia. La trama se siente poco más que un pretexto para documentar las festividades religiosas de un pequeño pueblo de Perú. Ahí vive la protagonista que da nombre al título, Madeinusa (Magaly Solier), una adolescente indígena de dulce voz, quien vive con su hermana y su padre, el cual, además de ser el alcalde del pueblo abusa sexualmente de ella. Su madre partió a Lima y la bautizó con tal nombre luego de ver la frase en un anuncio. Cuando llega al pueblo accidentalmente un joven geólogo (Carlos de la Torre), la vida de la chica tendrá un giro, en medio de las agitaciones intolerantes de la población ante la llegada de un "extranjero".
Más en pantallanueve.blogspot.com
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/16/23
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Audience Member
Most non-latinos or very urban persons must think this is just fiction and what a way to portray rural peruvian people. Llosa impresses me when she takes vernacular traditions to a movie. I haven't heard of the one of the potato in her 2nd movie, but the one about "god being dead" it is not new to me. Nor the heavy and erratic behavior of rural people when they drink for 3 or 4 days in a row.
Who needs horror movies, when you have a well told story about abuse, false believes and misconceptions?
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/25/23
Full Review
Audience Member
I didn't like this movie at all. I just couldn't make myself finish it.
Rated 1/5 Stars •
Rated 1 out of 5 stars
02/28/23
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