Los niños invisibles

I saw this film on a DVD I bought from a local Blockbuster store. Having already read about it and been intrigued by the premise, I snapped it up from the bargain sale bin. The principal players are a group of kids who give natural, unstudied performances that ring true and don't have that "child actor" quality that can get on your nerves. A boy wants to become invisible in order to get close to his pretty, but stand-offish young neighbor ("airy," is how one of his friends describe her, according to the subtitles). With the help of some forbidden black magic performed by him and his three friends, he does indeed become invisible, or so it seems. How does this happen? The plot line cunningly brings it about, but you must see the film to appreciate how. This is a nice break from the over-produced and cynical films we see from Hollywood. The kids nicely conjure up the quality of innocence in which a midnight black magic ceremony in the local cemetery is a great adventure, and deadly serious business. Remember that electric thrill you got when you first got away with something forbidden, and absolutely nobody knew? If you never experienced it as a kid, what a pity! Discover (or rediscover) it with this excellent Venezuelan/Colombian production.

I saw this film at the inaugural ceremony of this year's Bogota International Film Festival. I really wasn't very enthusiastic about a film I thought wasn't going to be anything special, but having free entries and looking forward to the ceremony itself, I went to see it. As soon as the film started I realized I had been mistaken about it. And by the end I was so glad I hadn't missed it! This is truly one of the best films made in Colombia in the past ten years. The film is set in the 1930's or 40's in a small Colombian town and tells the story of three children who go through all sorts of adventures and misventures in order to become invisible. The protagonist's motivation is the secret love he has for his neighbour, a very beautiful but unkind little girl (only she is also secretly in love with him). The story is narrated by this protagonist around fifty years afterwards, and the tone of the story is the perfect one: an epic tone that gives the children's adventures enormous proportions. The film is full of tender and hilarious moments that bring many spectators close to tears and remind all of our childhoods. Technically speaking, the film is also remarkable!! The quality of this film is quite good for a Colombian one, and I specially liked the cinematography. So, if you can catch this film... I recommend it.

Though I didn't think the plot sounded very interesting, I decided to rent this based on some positive buzz I had heard about the film from local festivals. I personally found the film to be terribly boring. In 1950s Colombia, a small town is abuzz because (A)- a local girl has been selected to represent the state in the Miss Colombia Pageant for the first time and (B)- the first-ever television has arrived for them to watch it on. Against the backdrop, we watch the story of a chubby 12-year old boy who likes his next-door neighbor. Ho-hum. He steals a black magic manual that will supposedly cause him to become invisible upon performing a ritual in the cemetery with the gizzard of a stolen hen, the heart of a cat, and a scapulary (a kind of Catholic medallion). He then enlists the help of two friends. A boring coming-of-tale. 3/10