The Eloquent Image

Francisco Castro

HAVANA TIMES — A boy, no older than six years old, is riding on his tricycle. The zoom begins to pull backwards and we discover the child is in the hall of a building. The shot begins opening up even more, until on the left we can see a sign reading “Do Not Enter.”

The child is going in circles on his little scooter. He’s alone. The reverse zoom stops when a huge hole in the floor enters the shot. The camera tilts so that we can see — downstairs, through the gap — some teenagers are playing with a ball.

These images are from the film “La pelicula de Ana”. Though the movie deals with prostitution in all its forms, I’m making this comment based on the shots described above.

The meanings found in those images are infinite, as many as the viewers might have. Likewise, they may or may not be in sync with the original idea of the director – this is the wonder of art.

After seeing those images, a gust of meaning came to my mind, all contributing to a synthesis of the idea of homeland…and not of just any country, but of Cuba – ours, the film’s authors and mine.

Cuba today, that building, the future, a child going in circles upstairs. It’s the future on the brink of an abyss. Downstairs is the present. The present that’s only about chasing an elusive ball, an evasive one, bouncing from side to side, up and down, always chased but never caught.

Concerning this present, and facing this future, is the latent and visible threat of imminent collapse. It is an image of the peremptory in an atmosphere of uncertainty…the signs of change, the warnings of danger.

The movie is a masterful summary of what we are, of the state of affairs, of things to come. It is the eloquence of an image as a demonstration of mastery in the craft.
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La Pelicula de Ana / Cuba, 2012. / 100’ / Daniel Diaz Torres / Laura de la Uz, Yuliet Cruz, Thomas Cao, Michel Ostrowski / Drama, 16 years and older. / An actress without much professional luck becomes the director of a video and films an unusual documentary, in which she’s included among its protagonists.

Awards at the 2012 Havana Film Festival:

• Laura de la Uz (Best Actress)
• Eduardo del Llano and Daniel Díaz Torres (Best Screenplay)

Side Awards:

• Cultural journalists of the UPEC Cuban journalist’s circle.
• Distribution for Amazonia Films.