La Soledad

(La soledad)
Jorge Thielen-Armand | Drama, Fiction

2016 | 89 minutes | Venezuela, Canada, Italy

Handyman José lives with his family in La Soledad, a ramshackle villa located in what was once among Caracas’ most affluent neighborhoods. Might a fabled treasure supposedly hidden in La Soledad’s walls offer José’s family a chance at a better life?

Synopsis

Handyman José lives with his family in La Soledad, a dilapidated villa located in what was once among Caracas’ most affluent neighborhoods. After learning that the villa’s owners are planning to sell the estate, José seeks any solution that might keep his six-year-old daughter from growing up in Caracas’ crime-sodden slums. Might that fabled treasure supposedly hidden in La Soledad’s walls offer José’s family a chance at a better life?

Jorge Thielen Armand’s feature debut carves fiction from reality: La Soledad was once his family’s home; this story is true, acted out by the people who lived it. La Soledad looks beyond the headlines and gives a voice to those affected by contemporary Venezuela’s inner turmoil. It is a magnificent feat of real-life storytelling—and a profound fusion of creativity and compassion.

Reviews

"Recommended. Thielen Armand and his crew deserve enormous credit for... shining a light on an aspect of economic collapse that doesn't get a lot of attention in the news media, the slow and painful death of that which we call "ordinary." La Soledad is especially promising for a debut feature and marks its director as one to watch." — Andy Horbal, Cornell University Library, EMRO

"Sometimes humorous, sometimes poetic, and ultimately devastating." — Glenn Kenny, RogerEbert.com

"Director Jorge Thielen Armand paints a social-political mosaic of current Venezuela, with this utterly captivating, poetic observation on the strength of a father decided to save his family and the powerful connection they share." — Roger Costa, Brazilian Press

"An inventive and insightful exercise in exploring a real location down to the last cobwebbed corner. And politically, it depicts a desperate state of affairs, but with hope and quiet energy." — Jonathan Romney, The Guardian

"A window into the catastrophic reality of the current Venezuela." — Erika Angulo, Nbcnews.com

"A vital survey of contemporary Venezuela as seen from the eyes of a single, struggling working class family." — David Jenkins, Little White Lies

"Combining sharp social critique with the offbeat poetry of magical realism, La Soledad offers an engaging portrait of the effects of economic catastrophe on individuals' lives...La Soledad not only offers a lyrical evocation of a decaying world but also opens up new possibilities for documentary cinema." — Institute of Contemporary Arts, London

"Acted out by a cast of real-life personages...Poetic and ultimately devastating. It puts a human face on the economic catastrophe of contemporary Venezuela." —Glenn Kenny, RogerEbert.com

"A flower of a film amid the ruins of Caracas." — The Guardian

"Remarkably assured, even as it blurs the lines between fiction and reality. " —Kevin Maher, Times (UK)

Citation
Main credits

Thielen Armand, Jorge (film director)
Thielen Armand, Jorge (film producer)
Thielen Armand, Jorge (screenwriter)
López, Adrializ (on-screen participant)
Dolores López, José (on-screen participant)
Alvillares, Marley (on-screen participant)
Michelangeli, Rodrigo (film producer)
Michelangeli, Rodrigo (screenwriter)
Herrera, Adriana (film producer)

Other credits

Cinematography, Rodrigo Michelangeli; editor, Felipe Guerrero.


Citation
Cataloging
Keywords
Venezuela, Caracas, crisis, class, race, african descendent, Chavez, Nicolas Maduro, spanish, spanish language, latin america, latin american cinema, latin american film, ibero america, latin, latinx, latino, latina,,latin american studies, caribbean american studies, island studies, latin american culture, latin american history, latin american politics, caribbean american culture, caribbean american history, caribbean american politics, latin american languages, latin american and caribbean studies, hispanic american studies, hispanic people, hispanic culture, hispanic politics,racism, discrimination, prejudice, ethnicity, ethnic, race studies, ethnic studies, racist, racial sensitivity, bias, prejudice, racial prejudice, ethnic prejudice, genetics, hereditary, culture, ethnic culture, ethnology, ethnography, ethnic sensitivity,cinema studies, film studies, cinema, film, movies, motion pictures, film history, film production, film criticism, cinema history, cinema production, cinema criticism, movie history, movie production, movie criticism, history of cinema, history of film,south america, south american countries, countries in south america, argentina, bolivia, brazil, chile, colombia, ecuador, guyana, paraguay, peru, suriname, uruguay, venezuela, south american politics, south american culture, south american cuisine, south american education, south america in media, south american languages, south america history,culture, identity, identity politics, culture wars, left wing, right wing, intersectionality, identity groups, civilization, literacy, humanism, cancel culture, online culture, cultural revolution, cultural diffusion, culture shock, popular culture, pop culture, material culture, cultural capital, cultural assimilation ,economics, social class, money, capital, capitalism, class, economy, prejudice, intersectionality, inequality, poverty, income gap, wage gap, class warfare, elitism, snobbery, bourgeois, poverty, upper class, middle class, lower class, nouveau riche,family, kin, fellowship, household, immediate family, extended family, multigenerational family, multigenerational household, kinfolk, family tree, genealogy, nuclear family, modern family, family tree,health, healthy, physical health, mental health, emotional health, health equity, public health, health care, health policy, fitness, veracity, welfare, soundness, aging, age, old age, senior, youth, middle age, aging gracefully, advanced age, collective health, maturity,political science, micropolitics, macropolitics, political theory, political education, political movements, political thinking, political criticism, poly sci, polysci, political sci, political sciences, political history, history of politics, political systems,sociology, anthropology, psychology, sociological, sociological perspectives, conflict theory, human conflicts, sociological thinking,conflict perspective, topics in sociology, sociology topics, sociology studies, social studies, people and cultures, human relations, human relationships, cultural studies, culture studies ,la soledad,venezuela,soledad,war don don,Negro,before,colombia,la soldad,argentine junta,solidad,pelo malo,art activism,la soleda,jose,lasoledad,spanish,cali colombia,slums,haine,Bayona,Marley,Embrace of the Serpent,Ken Loach,british movies,sueña la Alhambra,The family,dolores,venice,la solidad,mammoth,La vida en común,la haina,the road movie,brazil,el abrazo de la serpiente,Slave,spnish movies,slum,soccer colombia,maine,honeyland,jorge sanjines,the mother and the whore,the cobweb,crime,Growing Up Female,growing old,bob marley,Adri Miserachs,pragda,ecuador,succession,motorcycle diaries,real crime,blow up,hispanic films,spanish movies,before the revolution,caracas,movies,movies in spanish,dolor y gloria,Sergi López,La Soledad.,Dolores 2016,comedies in spanish,a better life; Global Economy; Family; Health and Aging; Sociology; "La Soledad: A vivid and intimate account in comptemporary Venezuela"; Pragda; narrative; drama
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Festivals

Venice International Film Festival
Cartagena International Film Festival
Buenos Aires Festival of Independent Cinema
Biarritz Festival of Latin American Cinema - Prix du Syndicat Français de la Critique de Cinéma
Durban International Film Festival - Best Screenplay, Best Editing
Miami International Film Festival - Audience Award for Best Film

DIRECTOR: Jorge Thielen-Armand

NATIONALITY: Venezuela, Canada, Italy

YEAR: 2016

GENRE: Drama, Fiction

LANGUAGE: Spanish

COLOR / B&W: Color

GRADE LEVEL: High School, College, Adults

SUBTITLE/CC: AVAILABLE

AUDIO DESCRIPTION: NOT AVAILABLE

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