If you know Luis Buñuel as an artist of the surreal, watch Susana (1951) and explore the master’s oeuvre through a film that merges his embellishment of surrealism and familial conflict into one steamy melodrama.  

 Made during Bunuel’s Mexican period in 1951, Susana is a follow-up to his landmark film Los Olvidados and is a sensual and cautionary tale of unchained temptation. Susana (The Devil and the Flesh) is about a woman escapee from a reformatory asylum who ends up seeking shelter and employment on a plantation. The men of the plantation who gladly take Susana (Rosita Quintana) in are pitted against each other for her affections. This conflict among young and old threatens the unity of their family as a trustworthy amalgam of individuals as they lose sight of their bonds and each seek the love of Susana as their direct objective.   

Luis Buñuel | Mexico | 86 minutes | In Spanish with English subtitles

If you’re a fan of the American independent film movement of the 1990’s, this comedic look at young slackers in an urban setting in Uruguay is for you.   

25 Watts is a shaggy and comedic film that depicts the lives of Leche, Javi, and Seba as they toss back drinks and avoid work or responsibility. The unique take on the slacker lifestyle is what Juan Pablo Revella and Pablo Stoll offer with 25 Watts. Set over the course of 24 hours, hints of a Jim Jarmusch style can be felt across this film, while characters are depicted bizarrely to create a comedic touch. A Uruguayan slacker comedy that takes place in the city of Montevideo is both influenced by Richard Linklater’s Slacker and Kevin Smith’s Clerks but has its own odd deadpan sensibility.   

Juan Pablo Rebella & Pablo Stoll | Uruguay | 94 minutes | In Spanish with English Subtitles

The legend of Eréndira tells the story of a brave young indigenous woman who took up arms against the Spanish conquistadors during the 16th century. With a marriage imminent, Eréndira defies the patriarchal confines of her people, the Purepecha, by stealing a horse and teaching herself to ride while also using her skills to fight the invading Spaniards. She courageously stood up against the social conventions that kept women from participating in war.   

As a potent icon of strength and rebellion for indigenous Mexican cultures, Eréndira is a strong example of a powerful woman in the 1700s, and the film Eréndira Ikikunari brings this colorful legend to life with Ariel Award-nominated art direction, authentic costume design, make-up, and special effects, courtesy of producer-writer-director Juan Mora Catlett. The characters speak the pre-contact language Purépecha while the film gives off odd touches of Jodorowsky and Paradjanov. If this vibrant and psychedelic look at such a notable figure interest you, then our FACETS screening is perfect for your viewing pleasure!  

Juan Mora Catlett | Mexico | 107 minutes |  In Purepecha with English subtitles

Featuring a special introduction by critic and writer Raphael Jose Martinez.

Entered in the 1990 Cannes Film Festival, which is the first Colombian film to be featured at Cannes, Rodrigo D reveals the brutal tale of a teenager trying to make his way in the toughest of towns: Medellin, Colombia. Rodrigo dreams of playing rock and roll, so he rallies his friends into a punk band. What becomes of this band is that their music emerges from a web of violence, fear, aimlessness, drugs, and jail. The main character Rodrigo D is a drummer in this hardcore punk band, and the film includes raw Colombian punk on the soundtrack and live footage of Rodrigo and others performing. This film also gives us a look into the grim realities of the youths who aimlessly wander around and commit crimes, even murder.  

Music seems to be salvation in this film, which quite literally states “No Future” in the title of the film. A lack of prospects for these Colombian youth is exactly what turns them into musicians, a path that gets them out of the violence that plagues the tough town Medellin. Rodrigo D invites comparisons to Luis Buñuel’s Los Olvidos and Alex Cox’s Sid & Nancy. The film was on Thurston Moore’s Top 10 Punk Rock Films list for Sight & Sound Magazine. 

Victor Gaviria | Colombia | 91 minutes |  In Spanish with English subtitles

Meet Raphael Jose Martinez

Raphael Jose Martinez began playing in punk bands and writing for fanzines in the mid-90s. They’re the former editor of the publications No Friends (Maga)Zine, Love in the Time of Scabies, as well as Maximum Rocknroll, where they were also a contributor intermittently from 2004-2016.

After putting in far too many many tours of duty in the DIY punk wars of the late 20th and early 21st centuries they shifted focus back to their love of film. Currently they are a regular contributor to the sites CineFile.info (as a film reviewer) and Film-Cred.com (as a features writer focusing on interviews with independent filmmakers), as well a film programmer at both DocFilms and Analog.

With decades of knowledge of international underground music and film, they’re very excited to help present, and contextualize, Rodrigo D: No futuro for this screening.