La ciénaga

Released Oct 3, 2001

1h 40m

Drama

List

87%

47 Reviews

Tomatometer

79%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

This Argentinean tale, which revolves around a group of families passing summer vacation in a rural country house, does not rely on a concrete plot line, but rather roves, rambles, and stumbles upon each new event. No event, no action, no exchange of words, no scene of the movie is more or less important than another. Instead, the film continues nonsequentially in what feels like a prolonged wait.

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Critics Consensus

Dense yet impressively focused, La Cienaga is a disquieting look at domestic dissatisfaction - and a powerful calling card for debuting writer-director Lucrecia Martel.

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Adam Nayman

The Ringer

An early image of a suntanned chest impaled by the shards of a broken wine glass becomes an emblem of Martel's ability to draw blood from her subject matter.

Apr 15, 2019

Full Review

Meredith Brody

Chicago Reader

Every shot is dense with life, with children and animals running in and out, yet the movie is highly focused, a small masterpiece.

Apr 6, 2017

Full Review

Empire Magazine

Rated: 3/5

Dec 30, 2006

Full Review

Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

A portrait of the decline of the Argentine social classes in the abyss of the socioeconomic recession, but whose nucleus is populated by sterile characters and anodyne episodes of daily life. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 5/10

Sep 1, 2023

Full Review

Diego Batlle

Otroscines.com

... This film digs under a surface of normality that can only be apparent and ephemeral. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 5/5

Aug 28, 2023

Full Review

Annlee Ellingson

CineWomen

With a mobile, up-close camera as entrenched as a member of the family, [Lucrecia] Martel casts an acerbic eye on its expressions of gender, race, and class.

Aug 17, 2022

Full Review

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jorge r

Not a ver y good film for me but Well directed

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Taylor L

Someone needs to answer the phone. A dense, multigenerational odyssey about people sitting by the decrepit pool and generally killing time. Okay, maybe not an odyssey, but still an interesting portrait of a family told through sensations and yearning. There's not necessarily a uniform plot or goal, but we do get insights into the ambitions of each through a series of small moments, with more stream-of-consciousness than conventional structure. There aren't necessarily full arcs, but instead a host of simmering conflicts and deep-seated issues that come to the forefront when too many people are forced into close quarters. On one side, there are the elderly - desperately clinging onto what they have, preserving the remains of their former selves and compensating for the inevitable march of time with heavy drinking; Graciela Borges' Mecha flings her anger at the world back onto those around her, alone in her suffering despite being surrounded by people. Alongside the slowly dying, we find the next generation, tentatively exploring their world and themselves. But they're united with the elderly in their environment - the swamp - which imparts the sensation of being stuck and miserable; the compound is haunted by a pervasive sense of dread (the perpetually-coming rain that never starts) that lingers over the old in their last years of vibrancy and the young in their poisoned promise of something more substantial. Being idle is apparently better than thrashing while sinking faster. Definitely a slow burn and more of a mood piece than a standard narrative, but brimming with character detail. Hope you like a sense of general dread. (4/5)

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/06/23

Full Review

dave s

La Cienaga has no linear plot to speak of, relying more on a sort of collective stream of consciousness style to get its message across – time seems blurred, the relationships between characters are often unclear, the scenes themselves often have little or no relationship to each other. And despite all of this, Argentine director Lucrecia Martel's debut is surprisingly rewarding for the patient and attentive viewer. Set in northern Argentina close to the Bolivian border, the film follows the interaction between family members at a rundown summer estate as they navigate their way through an oppressively hot summer. The movie exposes the fragility of family dynamics and manages to touch on a variety of themes, including perceived privilege and racism. It can be frustrating and disorienting at times based on its structure, but remains an interesting insight into a deeply flawed family.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

dave j

(In Argentina with English subtitles) Written and directed by Lucrecia Martel her first feature debut The Swamp as the English title indicates is reference to the environment which this particular family and the mothers close friends or much of her relatives are living like. The opening has Mecha (Graciela Borges) attempting to carry some wine glasses until she fell on them alerting her 3 children lazying in a room above them, resorting them to run down and taking their mother with the help of the maid to the hospital. As a result of this action forced her oldest son to come and visit her as well. And as he comes to visit he too is lying around.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Directed with Lucereia Martel's eye to the detail, she gives us a well-acted and honest film where anything happens but everything is about to explode.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

s r

The whole thing was sad, showing the incivility that is possible and how things just don't always go well or are complicated. It made me anxious in anticipation of what would happen and frustrated with the parents. Saw it on TCM.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Lucrecia Martel

Director

Mercedes Morán

Tali

Graciela Borges

Mecha

Martin Adjemian

Gregorio

Diego Baenas

Joaquín

Leonora Balcarce

Verónica

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Synopsis

This Argentinean tale, which revolves around a group of families passing summer vacation in a rural country house, does not rely on a concrete plot line, but rather roves, rambles, and stumbles upon each new event. No event, no action, no exchange of words, no scene of the movie is more or less important than another. Instead, the film continues nonsequentially in what feels like a prolonged wait.

Director: Lucrecia Martel
Producer: Ana Aizenberg, Diego Guebel, Mario Pergolini
Screenwriter: Lucrecia Martel
Distributor: Cowboy Pictures
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Spanish
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 3, 2001, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 17, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $103.2K
Runtime: 1h 40m
Sound Mix: Surround, DTS
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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