La ciénaga (2001)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Lucrecia Martel

Writer:

Lucrecia Martel (writer)

Release Date:

12 April 2001 (Argentina)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

The life of two women and their families in a small provincial town of Salta, Argentina.

Plot Keywords:

Argentina | Racism | Alcoholism | Swamp | Lesbian

Awards:

12 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Mercedes Morán	...	Tali
Graciela Borges	...	Mecha
Martín Adjemián	...	Gregorio
Leonora Balcarce	...	Verónica
Silvia Baylé	...	Mercedes
Sofia Bertolotto	...	Momi
Juan Cruz Bordeu	...	José
Noelia Bravo Herrera	...	Agustina
Maria Micol Ellero	...	Mariana
Andrea López	...	Isabel
Sebastián Montagna	...	Luciano
Daniel Valenzuela	...	Rafael
Franco Veneranda	...	Martín
Fabio Villafane	...	Perro
Diego Baenas	...	Joaquín

Directed by
Lucrecia Martel

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Lucrecia Martel		writer

Produced by
Ana Aizenberg	....	executive producer
Diego Guebel	....	executive producer
José María Morales	....	co-producer
Marta Parga	....	line producer
Mario Pergolini	....	executive producer
Lita Stantic	....	producer

Cinematography by
Hugo Colace

Film Editing by
Santiago Ricci

Casting by
Florencia Blanco
Martín Mainoli
Luciana Rico
Natalia Smirnoff

Production Design by
Graciela Oderigo

Art Direction by
Graciela Oderigo

Set Decoration by
Cristina Nigro

Makeup Department
Marisa Menta	....	makeup artist
Sebastián Molchasky	....	special makeup effects artist

Production Management
Marta Parga	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Fernando Alcalde	....	assistant director
Natalia Smirnoff	....	assistant director
Fabiana Tiscornia	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Guido Berenblum	....	sound
Emmanuel Croset	....	sound mixer
Adrián De Michele	....	sound (as Adrian de Michelle)
Hervé Guyader	....	sound
Milena Poylo	....	sound post-production producer
Victor Alejandro Tendler	....	sound assistant (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Rubén Santeiro	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Hugo Colace	....	camera operator
Diego Worel	....	assistant camera

Other crew
Silvana Di Francesco	....	location manager
Matías Mosteirín	....	executive production assistant

Thanks
Daniel Burman	....	thanks

Production Companies

• 4k Films
• Wanda Visión S.A.
• Code Red
• Cuatro Cabezas
• TS Productions

Distributors

• Ad Vitam Distribution (2001) (France) (theatrical)
• Atalanta Filmes (2003) (Portugal) (theatrical)
• Cinemien (2002) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Cowboy Booking International (2001) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• ICA Projects (2001) (UK) (theatrical)
• Look Now! (2001-2002) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Líder Films (2001) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Wanda Visión S.A. (2001) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Homescreen (200?) (Netherlands) (video)
• Transeuropa Video Entertainment (TVE) (2001) (Argentina) (VHS)
• VideoFilmes (200?) (Brazil) (DVD)

Also Known As:

The Swamp (Canada: English title) (International: English title) (USA)
La ciénaga (France)
La ciénaga, de Lucrecia Martel (Spain)

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

Argentina | France | Spain

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | DTS-Stereo

Certification:

Canada:AA | Portugal:M/12 | Argentina:13 | Belgium:KT | Chile:14 | France:U | Germany:12 | Italy:T | Netherlands:12 | Spain:13 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12 | USA:R | Brazil:14

Filming Locations:

Salta, Argentina

Company:

4k Films

Quotes:

Mecha: ¡Qué porquería me resultaste, Gregorio!
Mecha: ¡Chinita carnavalera!

A very good and important film because its portrayal of family dysfunction is uncannily symbolic of the malaise affecting Argentine society today.

La Cienaga means "the bog" in Spanish and it seems to symbolize the kind of emotional place where the dysfunctional families in the film exist. People are closely tied to each other mainly by their inability to come out of "the bog." The many disturbing, and even somewhat confusing images and dialogue, succeed well in conveying the oppression, ills, and limitations that plague the lives of the characters. It is a very important film to come out of Argentina. Having grown up in that country and being acquainted with its present social environment, I find this particular portrayal of family problems to be amazingly symbolic of the malaise affecting Argentine society today. In this regard, the absence of any obvious political or ideological reference makes the film even more interesting.