DIRECTOR: FERNANDO GUZZONI
STARRING: LAURA LOPEZ, ALEJANDRO GOIC, AMPARO NOGUERA
RUNNING TIME: 1 HR 34 MINUTES
Blanca lives in a foster home for minors run by father Manuel. A sexual scandal involving businessmen and politicians puts Blanca and Manuel in the eye of the press, turning Blanca into a feminist martyr and key witness of the case.
STARRING: LAURA LOPEZ, ALEJANDRO GOIC, AMPARO NOGUERA
RUNNING TIME: 1 HR 34 MINUTES
Blanca lives in a foster home for minors run by father Manuel. A sexual scandal involving businessmen and politicians puts Blanca and Manuel in the eye of the press, turning Blanca into a feminist martyr and key witness of the case.
FILM REVIEW:
(This review contains spoilers.)
“This is the only place where you’re human beings.”
Blanquita is the latest International Feature submission from Chile. With his latest film, director Fernando Guzzoni has created a disturbing and unique spin on a difficult subject matter where a young girl accuses a senator of rape.
The film takes place in a shelter where young boys and young girls who’ve survived various kinds of abuse and violence live under the careful attention of a priest named Manuel. Blanca, who goes by Blanquita, and Carlos are two children who are a part of this community.
Blanquita, who was raped by her father at the age of seven, became homeless when she was ten, and then was in and out of the shelter for the next few years due to being addicted to crack cocaine, is now in a much better situation as an 18 year old girl. She helps Manuel with the other children living in the facility.
She ends up becoming close to Carlos. Due to repeated rape and drug usage, Carlos suffers from low cognitive abilities and forcing him to remember the past would kill him. He is unable to testify against his abusers due to suicidal tendencies and trauma, allowing his rapists to get away with the crimes.
When Blanquita hears on the news that a pedophile ring run by a man named Pablo is arrested, repressed memories from her past begin to come out creating a grim realism about our society.
Blanquita is the feature acting debut for Laura Lopez and she gives an incredible performance. The entire film is shot under greyness and darkness creating the perfect atmosphere for this dark topic. With any child who has suffered the most unimaginable trauma it’s not always fully clear when Blanquita is telling us the truth or is imagining what could’ve happened. This creates the perfect eerie, complex film about rape survivors, the guilty, and the society that we have created protecting those who have power. Regardless of the outcome, Blanquita is brave, strong and broken all at once.
(This review contains spoilers.)
“This is the only place where you’re human beings.”
Blanquita is the latest International Feature submission from Chile. With his latest film, director Fernando Guzzoni has created a disturbing and unique spin on a difficult subject matter where a young girl accuses a senator of rape.
The film takes place in a shelter where young boys and young girls who’ve survived various kinds of abuse and violence live under the careful attention of a priest named Manuel. Blanca, who goes by Blanquita, and Carlos are two children who are a part of this community.
Blanquita, who was raped by her father at the age of seven, became homeless when she was ten, and then was in and out of the shelter for the next few years due to being addicted to crack cocaine, is now in a much better situation as an 18 year old girl. She helps Manuel with the other children living in the facility.
She ends up becoming close to Carlos. Due to repeated rape and drug usage, Carlos suffers from low cognitive abilities and forcing him to remember the past would kill him. He is unable to testify against his abusers due to suicidal tendencies and trauma, allowing his rapists to get away with the crimes.
When Blanquita hears on the news that a pedophile ring run by a man named Pablo is arrested, repressed memories from her past begin to come out creating a grim realism about our society.
Blanquita is the feature acting debut for Laura Lopez and she gives an incredible performance. The entire film is shot under greyness and darkness creating the perfect atmosphere for this dark topic. With any child who has suffered the most unimaginable trauma it’s not always fully clear when Blanquita is telling us the truth or is imagining what could’ve happened. This creates the perfect eerie, complex film about rape survivors, the guilty, and the society that we have created protecting those who have power. Regardless of the outcome, Blanquita is brave, strong and broken all at once.
