As bestas: La terra della discordia

Wow! I went in to this movie with no expectations at all and was actually a bit blown away. It is a really good slow burner of a thriller. Set in the Galician mountains, the movie follows a retired French couple who settles in a rural village. Their presence however angers two locals (brothers) who start to act hostile towards the couple. Things slowly escalate from there.

The movie is really, really tense, from start to finish. As a viewer, one get the feeling that anything can happen at any time due to the very unpredictable and impulsive brothers. The movie takes full advantage of this while tightly following the couple doing their chores, resulting in a suspenseful atmosphere. The acting overall is excellent, with great cinematography as well. The movie simply looks stunning with beautiful mountain ranges as a backdrop for many of the scenes.

It is a pretty long and slow movie, so I can see that it might be a bit off-putting for some. However, if you like suspenseful slow burners, give this a go!

(Seen at the 2022 Stockholm International Film Festival)

To my limited knowledge of Galician cinema, based on a handful of movies by Lois Patiño, Oliver Laxe and Eloy Enciso, today I add Rodrigo Sorogoyen's film «As bestas», a work that I add to the alternative offer, thanks to the contribution of friends and my own search for a different cinema and with greater values than the bad Los Angeles productions that project all fronts, offering us more of the same over and over again.

Rather than watching another Hollywood version of «Pinocchio» and another call to war in «Avatar», I prefer this strong, harsh and rough story in rural Galicia, about farmers, those people who supply the tables of the poor and the millionaires, who, in addition, deceive them by buying their land for nothing to build at a lower price what costs them a small fortune in their countries, such as wind turbines.

The initial sequence of «As bestas» warns us of what we are going to see: three men knock down a wild horse to guarantee its existence in freedom (the number of wild horses in Galicia has reduced to 50% in five decades). That force and stabilizing element of the ecological balance are in danger of extinction and the kind of persons who appear in the film is equally destined to disappear... for the sake of "progress".

The film tells the story of a French couple who live in a town in Galicia, afflicted by the abandonment of its locals and state oblivion. When the French husband convinces a group of Galicians not to sell their land to a Dutch company that wants to install wind turbines, it arouses the hatred of two neighbors in favor of the sale, a hatred that reaches tragic levels.

«As bestas» goes beyond this mere anecdote briefly described and becomes a dramatic treatise that combines elements of ethnography, cultural identity, economy, nationality, migration, gender, xenophobia, crime, and rights to decent work and standard of living. The story follows the Aristotelian structure, although at one point the center of attention shifts from the French man to his wife, who brings the drama to a sensible and reasonable conclusion.

«As bestas» is also graced by the work of the cast, made up of a happy integration of professional and natural actors. Awarded at the San Sebastián, Chicago and Tokyo film festivals, it is a highly recommended motion picture.

Splendid film that bases much of its story in a suffocating atmosphere and a slow narrative pace but that creates that aura that overwhelms you throughout the film.

The performances, the direction and the photography, not to mention the script, are sublime and are destined to become an immediate classic of Spanish cinema, since the portrayal of this forgotten and impoverished Spain is sublime.

It is a work that perfectly captures the differences between the local people of the rural communities and those who settle from the cities and how the way of life of both clashes and are practically irreconcilable differences due to the opposite way of life and values that both communities have.

As an inhabitant of a village similar to the one shown in the film I can say that it is a very faithful portrayal of the differences and conflicts between the natives and those who come from outside eager to implement a change of life without asking or taking into account the local population.

From north to south and from east to west. Beasts who don't like foreigners, who don't like those who aren't locals, those who don't speak the same language, who don't have the same religion, who don't have the same political opinions, who don't have the same hair, who have a nice car, who have an ugly car, and so on : these venomous snakes nastily defend their little piece of mental territory against the Other. And it's not just in the mountain countryside, it's everywhere in the world of work, schools, colleges, universities, factories, offices, sports clubs, bars, political meetings, that they poison the lives of honest and peaceful people.

Love life, take good care of your family, do not envy anyone, and enforce the laws since active and incorruptible police and justice are essential for a peaceful society.

With a film of incredible tension from start to finish, thanks to Rodrigo Sorogoyen and his excellent Spanish and French actors for this remarkable allegory.

I had the pleasure of attending Rodrigo Sorogoyen's "As Bestas" premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and my blood is still boiling. I have not seen a film that has made me feel as tense and nervous as this one since Whiplash. Based on the audience's reaction and the ~6 minute standing ovation, I am sure I'm not the only one.

The movie covers the story of a retired french couple who decides to move to a rural village in the Galician mountains. Their love for the village and enthusiasm is however met by the abusive and antagonistic oppression of a local family who has been living there their whole life. The two brothers, played flawlessly by Luis Zahera and Diego Anido, are offended by the "frenchie's" higher intellectuality and devote their time to make the couple's life a living hell.

Spanish cinema once again proves its extent and foundation with this perfectly executed, brilliantly written, and graciously acted piece of work. A must watch.