benjaminredcloud

Summers are very import times for growing children and teens. Freedom lets them think about who they are, explore relationships, imagining how their lives will be when their infancy is over. It's also a time for grownups to think about balances: money, accomplishments, past mistakes.

This movie is about all of that. An children's books author, his wife and his three children go on holiday in an old country house near a small river. Juana is 5 or 6, Miguel is about 8-10, Jorge, the oldest, is entering his teen years. THe next day a man who once was very important to their mother, along with his wife. THe children call this man 'uncle Peter', and he's a man with great imagination. He loves playing with the children and the youngest children love to play with him because he invents incredible adventures just for him. Miguel, on the contrary, starts understanding things better and is a little more skeptical about all of that. Besides, he's partially aware of a great tragedy that happened some time ago to his 'uncle' and his wife.

THe story explores relationships. THe children's mother once was in love with uncle Peter, and that feeling of her still lingers in the most hidden parts of her heart. Her husband is aware of that, and he has to come to terms with his own feelings.

Uncle Peter and his wife have to come to term with the tragedy they had to go through some time in the past and he also has to address some issues of his own.

Jorge is growing up fast. Growing up is not always easy. He wants to let go of his childhood habits, but it's sad when you see your brother and sister to have so much fun.

Miguel has issues of his own. He still wets the bed every now and then, and he has an obsession with fire, but he's the one who most trusts Peter.

Juana doesn0t seem to have any issues at all, but she is the most important character in the final chapter of the story.

Teo el Pelirrojo is a dialog movie. THe story develops around what is being said rather than what is being done, and it's told by the point of view of a grown up Jorge that remembers that summer. it can be a bit slow, but it's fairly interesting. Unfortunately, it's no longer available. No DVD edition has aver been made and the old videocassettes are increasingly difficult to find.

Almost a Shakespearean, with play within play, the writers start from the opinion of Lorca's position during the War of 1936 to express a strong disagreement on Aznar's politics, and particularly on his decision to fight the Irak's War with the Americans. Clearly, political opinions are very personal, and one can approve the writers' opinion, or not. However it can't be denied that the construction of this self-made movie is quite good, as it is the use of cameras, fragmented when anguished feelings are present, smooth when in the script everything goes as it should (not very often, though).The actors are also very good, as most of Spanish less famous actors are. They have an excellent use of facial expressions and body language, not to speak of the voice, which is always deep and clearly well trained.

I must confess that, being a Lefty myself and an opponent of Berlusconi's government, I purchased this movie mainly because of its content, and I truly appreciated a certain dream in which Bush and Aznar were the only character. I laughed, because Berlusconi could easily take Aznar's place. I only wish that somebody did something like that in Italy too. We need this kind of culture.

It appears to me, when I watch this kind of nonsense, that Karl Marx was right when he said the religion is people's opium. How can they be so blind? Harry Potter teaches so much about values. Bravery, friendships, anti-racism, fight for freedom... Maybe they are afraid of the fact that values can be taught outside religion too. Sometimes even better. The level of tolerance Harry Potter shows - he befriends mudbloods, house elves, half giants, giants, werewolves,....- is much higher than that of activists from certain churches. If you think about it, it was Christians who burned witches, not the other way round. And it was Christians who massacred a great number of Native Americans, both North and SOuth of the Equator. And it was Christians who killed 6 million Jews and 6 millions Muslims, gays, political, Jeovah witnesses opponents around 60 years ago. And I take Christians as examples, because every big religion has been intolerant of other ideas. Harry Potter is a nice movie to watch with kids - I'd say- 10 and up.