Técnicas de duelo: Una cuestión de honor (1988)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Sergio Cabrera

Writer:

Humberto Dorado (writer)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

The teacher and the butcher of a small town in the tropical Andes, are both in love with the same woman (Miriam)...

Plot Keywords:

Machismo | Honor | Military

Awards:

6 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Frank Ramírez	...	Teacher Albarracín
Humberto Dorado	...	Butcher Oquendo
Florina Lemaitre	...	Miriam
Vicky Hernández	...	Encarnación
Kepa Amuchastegui	...	Carpenter
Ángelo Javier Lozano	...	Oquendo child
Edgardo Román	...	Sergeant
Manuel Pachón	...	Mayor Saravia
Luis Chiape	...	Secretary
Antonio Aparicio	...	Officer Alegría
Fausto Cabrera	...	Father Troncoso
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Humberto Arango	...	Blind man
Alicia De Rojas	...	Mother
Yolanda García
Elio Mesa	...	Photographer
Fabián Ortiz
Carlos Parruca	...	Pacific
Julián Román	...	Parra child
Darío Valdivielso
Miguel Ignacio Vanegas	...	Dumb man Masato

Also Known As:

A Matter of Honour (UK)
Details of a Duel
Técnicas de duelo

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

Colombia | Cuba

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Barichara, Santander, Colombia

Company:

FOCINE

sharp and funny satire of machismo

The action takes place in a small town in the Andes, as news spreads across town that the mild-mannered local schoolteacher and the local butcher are going to have a duel this afternoon. The filmmakers use this event as a weapon with which to skewer Latin machismo and the strict, old-fashioned code of honor by which these people live. It is never made clear why they are duelling or who challenged who, and neither man wants to fight the duel, but they both feel obligated because it's "a question of honor." As the morning progresses, both men go about trying to put their affairs in order in case they die, sometimes hilariously (the schoolteacher gets stuck at City Hall all morning, trying to pay debts on his own future death, thanks to red tape). There are some other nice potshots at the hipocrisy of the Catholic Church (the local priest offers the butcher more salvation the more money he is given, and roots for the schoolteacher to be killed because he is an atheist) and the local political system (the mayor, rather than stopping the duel, takes bets on it). All in all, this is a very funny and meaningful film, that anyone would enjoy. Try not to have a smile on your face as the duel plays itself out.