The Violin
Somewhere in Latin America a family of musicians and modest farmers join a fearless guerilla movement attempting to overthrow the brutal and sadistic government. When the military seizes their village, they flee to the sierra hills, forced to leave behind their stock of ammunition. While the guerillas organize a counter-attack, old Plutarco plays up his appearance as a harmless violin player in order to get into the village and recover the ammunition hidden in his corn fields. His violin playing charms the army captain, who orders Plutarco to come back daily. With tension escalating sky-high, guns and music take on a near holy significance with hundreds of lives hanging in the balance.
"The film is not a tract, it offers a sobering view of Mexican social reality, past and present." - David Walsh, World Socialist Web Site
Cast
- Ángel Tavira
DVD Features
Bonus short: Un bisou pour le monde, directed by Cyril Paris
Sound: Stereo 2.0
Discs: 1
- "One of the most amazing Mexican films in many a year...The Violin is filmmaking in its purest form. The debut film by Francisco Vargas moves us with its lyricism and shakes us with its honesty. A film that's moving, urgent and necessary."
- "A message this political has rarely been delivered in so poetic a form."
- "A terrific debut by Vargas, who wrote, directed and produced."
- "The Violin is so beautiful to look at, it almost wouldn't matter if it had a story. But it has one, and it's riveting."
- "The tiny, tough, sneakily moving film The Violin wears its revolutionary romanticism on its sleeve, not far from its gun."
- "A movie of undeniable gravitas and monumentality...."
- "Once the political lines are drawn, Vargas' film becomes richly layered, and builds with greater and greater tension toward its harrowing, inevitable finale."
Gallery
Awards & Recognition
Best Actor
Cannes Film Festival (Un Certain Regard)
Best Film
Mexican Oscars
Best Screenplay
Mexican Oscars
Best Supporting Actor
Mexican Oscars
C.I.C.A.E. Award
San Sebastian Int'l Film Festival
Casa de América Award
San Sebastian Int'l Film Festival
SIGNIS Award
San Sebastian Int'l Film Festival
Best Film
Gramado Film Festival
Best Actor
Gramado Film Festival
Best Screenplay
Gramado Film Festival
Audience Award
Gramado Film Festival
Critic's Award
Gramado Film Festival
Skyy Prize
San Francisco Int'l Film Festival
Audience Award
San Francisco Int'l Film Festival
Toronto Int'l Film Festival
Chicago Int'l Film Festival
Best First Feature
Ariel Awards
Best Screenplay
Ariel Awards
Best Supporting Actor
Ariel Awards
You May Also Like...
