Investigations

This film is one of the more important films of this age, especially for countries such as the United States where new stations such as Fox News dominate the airwaves. I am very surprised that a film with stars such as John Leguizamo giving great performances, and the support of Alfred Molina, that this film isn't receiving wide distribution in the United States.

The film exposes the fringes of Ecuador by setting the story in one of the country's poorest areas, the province of Los Rios in its filthy capital Babahoyo. Against this backdrop we see a group of journalists from a Mexican news station known for its program "Una Hora con la Verdad (An Hour with the Truth)" confront some of the harsh realities present in these areas. In their efforts to expose the life in los Rios, they learn how little they actually know about the people there and how difficult it can be to provide the Truth for their viewers.

Crónicas (2004) written and directed by Sebastián Cordero, is a grim movie about a grim subject. John Leguizamo plays Manolo Bonilla, a Miami-based TV reporter who is covering the story of a "monster" who is torturing and murdering young children in Ecuador.

Manolo is a good detective as well as a reporter of sensational news, and he thinks he may have discovered the identity of the murderer. The question is, Should a reporter just report, or should he be a participant in the story he is covering?

Leonor Watling is excellent as Marisa Iturralde, Manolo's producer and possibly his lover. Camilo Luzuriaga is excellent in the supporting role of Capitan Bolivar Rojas--"the only honest cop in Ecuador."

This is not a movie for the squeamish--it contains violence, scenes of humiliation, and graphic--but unromantic--sex.

On the other hand, how often do you find a movie from Ecuador playing in Rochester, New York? Even at our excellent Little Theatre, films from South America are rare, and often--as in this case--worth seeking out.

Finally, if the views we get of prison conditions in Ecuador are accurate, I wouldn't even risk a parking ticket there, let alone anything more serious. Trust me--you just don't want to be in that particular Ecuadoran jail.

In case you are not familiar, Sebastian's first big movie was Ratas, Ratones y Rateros. That was a great movie, it showed a side of Ecuador that hadn't been explores or showed before. He had the magic of showing a probably not unique story in a unique way, a Latin and Ecuadorian way.

In Cronicas, he does this and more. First, it shows a reality that may even be unknown for some Ecuadorian. It escapes from big cities and nice stories towards the forgotten towns that are only remembered for unethical journalism or plain mockery. Second, now it is not just a story showing themes particular to a Latin audience but applicable and important for viewers anywhere: masks and the true self, the blurry gray region between good and bad, the relevance of regret... and more.

One friend told me, before watching the movie: You will not see TV the same way again. In many ways it is true, Cronicas takes you to the untold and un"spelled-out" stories behind the fractioned images in TV.

I am looking forward to Sebastian's next movie.

Young Ecuadorian director Sebastián Cordéro's "Crónicas" begins and mostly sustains itself as good intense fictional coverage of what can happen when corrupt, sensationalistic journalists in Latin America cover a crime wave far from home base and encounter what even for them are obvious moral conflicts when they attempt to exploit it.

A Mexican news team out of Miami goes to cover the search for "the Monster of Babahoyo," a pedophile serial killer in the province of Los Rios in a remote part of Ecuador. A violent incident in the street when the team arrives in Babahoyo puts their reporter in contact with somebody who may be a victim of public hysteria, or may be the killer. Crónicas never gives you time to think and screws up its suspenseful situation into a tight knot and then lets go and drops you. Somewhat ironically the result feels very like the first episode of a sensational TV miniseries. The film would have been better if it had stepped back occasionally and let us and the story breathe. A haunting opening sequence of a man alone bathing and washing clothes gives a hint of how that might have happened.

The news people are serviceable stereotypes: photogenic lead reporter Manolo Bonilla (John Leguizamo); his sexy female producer Marisa (Leonore Watling), who soon hops into bed with him; his raunchy, substance-abusing cameraman Ivan (José María Yazpik), who has to keep pointing out that they're all supposed to be a team. To lend cred and support to the movie and give them a boss there's Alfred Molina in the background phoning in as Miami anchorman Victor of a fictitious news show, "Una Hora con la Verdad," seen and heard only on tiny TV screens and ever-present cells. Haunting the news team as it prances around and threatening a confrontation that never really materializes is "the only honest cop in Latin America," who happens to be the local police captain and seems to have a lot of time on his hands which he spends tracking the news team and reminding them they're not following the rules. Such reminders are feeble since they're free to fly out whenever they want and have plenty of money to bribe low level cops. Besides that Manolo is asked for his autograph constantly and greeted as a hero for things he now wishes he hadn't done.

Director Sebastián Cordéro's best move in "Crónicas" is to try to build a serial killer who's not a spooky Hannibal Lector type super-villain but a human being whom his victims trust and other people like. Cordéro makes real headway at achieving that goal by choosing the pitiful, sweet-faced Damián Alcázar to play Vinicio Cepeda, the "witness" in prison who may be the suspect. Where Vinicio fits in winds up being too clearly telegraphed, but the best scenes are still the ones where Vinicio gives creepy, insinuating testimony to Manolo (away from Ivan's camera) and bargains for his life.

What also makes "Crónicas" worth watching, if you can stomach the theme and don't mind the simplifications and lack of modulation in the sequences, are the grittily authentic local backgrounds: messy hotel rooms, grungy prison cells, chaotic streets, shantytown dwellings. These give the in-your-face story a sense of authenticity that isn't entirely undercut by the stereotypes and the pumped-up action. What doesn't quite work is a screenplay that gets everything going full speed from the first reel and never lets up till it just walks away leaving you waiting for the next gripping episode.

(Seen at the San Francisco Film Festival, May 3, 2005)

Crónicas is more than just another lame and wannabe provocative satire that wants to prove how the media and charismatic reporters are capable of influencing people's opinions and emotions. In fact, it does handle about that, but it's definitely not a dumb satire. It's a harsh and harrowing social drama, set in an ultimately depressing environment and focusing on the inhabitants of a country that the pubic opinion usually neglects. Here is one foreign film production that Hollywood isn't likely to remake any time soon, and even if some fancy producer would consider a remake, you can rest assured that the content and especially the whole denouement will be changed drastically. The story entirely takes place in a small village in Ecuador, where a feared psychopath has already sexually abused and killed nearly 150 innocent children. New mass graves are discovered almost on a weekly basis and the petrified community fears the murderer will never be caught. The acclaimed Miami TV-reporter Manolo Bonilla, on location with his crew to shoot a documentary on the issue, prevents a man from getting lynched by an angry mob when he causes a car accident involving a young boy. Whilst in prison, the man provides Bonilla with a lot of detailed information concerning the murders and the reporter quickly becomes obsessed with the idea of catching the killer himself. In exchange for further information, Bonilla promises the man to do an emotional TV-show about his wrongful imprisonment. "Crónicas" benefices from a powerful first half hour and especially the climax sequences are ultimately fascinating and shocking. Unfortunately the middle-section of the film is somewhat sluggish and dull, but at least you can admire the beautiful filming location and the genuinely moving acting performances of the overall unknown cast. The film contains several unsettling images of violence and human misery, but the unconventional ending is far more shocking & disturbing than on screen violence could ever be. And you can even despise the characters for their action, because deep down you realize you'd do exactly the same. This film isn't a masterpiece, but it's definitely a film you won't forget easily.