Manuela Sáenz

Name: Manuela Sáenz
Genre: Drama
Duration: 1 h 37 min
Rating: 6.3
Cast: Beatriz Valdés, Mariano Álvarez, Erich Wildpret

20002000
1h 37m

IMDb RATING

6.3/10

129

YOUR RATING

Drama

In 1856, a whaler arrives in Paita, Peru; on board is Herman Melville, who is astonished to learn that Manuela Sáenz, for eight years the lover of Simón Bolívar, is still alive. He calls on ... Read allIn 1856, a whaler arrives in Paita, Peru; on board is Herman Melville, who is astonished to learn that Manuela Sáenz, for eight years the lover of Simón Bolívar, is still alive. He calls on her, and although she will not talk to him about her life, his visit sends her to her ches... Read allIn 1856, a whaler arrives in Paita, Peru; on board is Herman Melville, who is astonished to learn that Manuela Sáenz, for eight years the lover of Simón Bolívar, is still alive. He calls on her, and although she will not talk to him about her life, his visit sends her to her chest of Bolívar's letters. As she reads them, the sepia-toned present gives way to flashbacks... Read all

IMDb RATING

6.3/10

129

YOUR RATING

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5User reviews

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Featured review

8/10

Worth viewing especially for PanAmerican history

I watched this film in the Manuela Saenz museum in Quito, Ecuador surrounded by many artifacts owned by Manuela Saenz and Simon Bolivar. It was rather long for a museum visit but helps in understanding a lot of American history and one of the celebrated liberators of Ecuador.

I say "American" because this is what they call themselves. For those North Americans reading this there is an America with an older history than the USA. We call it South America but they that live there are just as American as anyone else. This film is about the liberation of the Americas and the women and men that fought and died.

Whether true or not, it is an amusing use of a young Herman Melville in the film to preserve the story of Manuela. Herman did actually publish Moby Dick a short time after the apparent time of his discussion of the book with Manuela.

Once I got over my frustration of being stuck watching a very long movie in a museum (without any warning as to the length) I settled into the story and enjoyed the plot. I do not think the version I saw was only 97 minutes as I am sure I timed it as 122 minutes playing from a DVD.

However the English translation is amusing at times as the translators use literal translation perfect English to replace Spanish phrases. As in many areas (of especially Ecuador) the use of English speakers would assist the locals in translating.

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