HAVANA (Reuters) - An Argentine film about a young girl kidnapped during the South American country's military dictatorship in the 1970s, "Garaje Olimpo'' (Olympus Garage), took the main prize Saturday at the Havana film festival.
The jury at the annual Festival of New Latin American Cinema, a highlight of the region's cultural calendar, praised the film by Marco Bechis for successfully ``transmitting the horror of a memory it is imperative not to forget.''
``Garaje Olimpo,'' named after a vehicle service center where the girl, Maria, is kidnapped, beat 48 other movies from around the region in the main fiction category.
Runner-up was Mexican director Gabriel Retes' tale of love and vengeance ``Un dulce olor a muerte'' (A Sweet Smell of Death). Another Argentine film, ``Yepeto,'' by director Eduardo Cacagno, took third place with the story of a 60-ish male teacher's tangled romances.
Argentina, which had 14 movies at the festival, scored another triumph in the best male actor category, with Argentine Pablo Echarri winning top honors for the film ``Solo gente'' (Only People).
Brazil's Denise Fraga won best female actor with her country's entry, ``Por detras del telon'' (Behind the Curtain), where she portrayed a young girl bent on playing Lady Macbeth in the tragedy by British playwright William Shakespeare.
As well as offering prizes and an opportunity to debut new works, the Havana festival provides a rare and popular opportunity for Cuba's film-loving public to enjoy foreign works that the Caribbean island is generally too poor to import.
Most of the 20 cinemas in Havana, and dozens of other venues around provincial Cuba, were packed throughout the festival, with long lines outside.
Organizers said about half a million people overall saw the films during the 11-day festival, which ended Saturday.
Reuters/Variety
17:14 12-12-99
Copyright 1999 Reuters Limited. |