Canoa

This was a hard film to watch .. not because it was a bad movie or something but because the story it was telling .. and what made it even harder is the fact that it was based on a true story .. a great movie that will leave you shocked, angry and vindictive but as a viewer satisfied.

I live in in Mexico and this movie was censored long time.It is a great movie and represents the reality of 1968 in mexico.

This movie is based in a real life story in which a group of students and university workers go on holiday and finish in a small town (Canoa) in the Mexican countryside. They look for a place to spend the night without being aware of what his happening around them until it is too late.

The political climate is volatile: Mexico, 1968, leftist students have been protesting all around the country and the local priest is a megalomaniac afraid to loose his little power and completely paranoid about communism.

What follows is the mob taking over under the directions of the local priest, with funest consequences for the unfortunate students.

Very explicit violence, Disturbing scenes.

Highly recommended.

For a knowledgeable viewer, there is no doubt that "Canoa" has become a major classic film due to various artistic as well as political reasons. It was one of the first films in the history of Mexican cinema to show that even history especially historical events can be given a fictional form. While watching "Canoa" one can easily understand how Christian religion especially catholic church was unjustly misused for one's personal gains.The use of a local character to narrate important facts and story works very well for "Canoa". A viewer is able to get detailed visual information of events which were responsible for horrible lynching of some youngsters by an irate mob. Authenticity seems to be this film's hallmark as viewers are likely to feel as if tragic events had taken place in their midst. For this reason, Felipe Cazals chose to depict important events through a time prism. Lastly, there are moments when a human body can withstand any amount of blows. One such moment was shown in Canoa when a doctor is utterly surprised to find a victim of violence in good shape. Director Felipe Cazals has always made films which have cast a poignant look at negative aspects of Mexican nation. His films need to be discovered by viewers if they wish to learn more about Mexican society. Hence, for this reason any effort to appreciate Canoa can be called a good start.

I watched Canoa when it first came out to the movie theaters; I was around 15 and I had lived the 1968's student movement. Tlatelolco massacre was fresh in our minds and hearts and while not referring directly to it, Canoa catches that feeling with honesty and courage. This two qualities are always present in Cazal's work, but this film is his master piece.

We have also tho see Cazal's films in the context of the Mexican cinema of the moment, along with the work of Arturo Ripstein, Jaime Humberto Hermosillo, Jorge Fons and many other talented filmmakers. In Mexico their work tend to be overlooked mostly for political reasons.

Mario de la Garza