I Dream in Another Language (2017)

When a language dies, a unique vision of the world is lost forever.

Director:

Ernesto Contreras

Writer:

Carlos Contreras

Stars:

Fernando Álvarez Rebeil, José Manuel Poncelis, Eligio Meléndez

15 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview:
Fernando Álvarez Rebeil	...	Martín
José Manuel Poncelis	...	Isauro
Eligio Meléndez	...	Evaristo
Fátima Molina	...	Lluvia
Juan Pablo de Santiago	...	Evaristo joven
Hoze Meléndez	...	Isauro joven
Norma Angélica	...	Flaviana
Monica Miguel	...	Jacinta
Nicolasa Ortíz Monasterio	...	María
Héctor Jiménez	...	Santiago
José Concepción Macías	...	Fausto
Gabriela Cartol	...	Marthita
Juan Antonio Llanes	...	Sacerdote
Mardonio Carballo	...	Silverio

Storyline

A millenary language agonizes: Its last two speakers, Evaristo and Isauro (70's) had a quarrel 50 years ago and haven't spoken to each other since. Martin, a linguist, will undertake the challenge of bringing the two old friends back together and convince them to talk again in order for him to be able to obtain a record of the language. Yet, hidden in the past, in the core of the jungle, lies a secret hidden in the language that makes it difficult to believe that the heart of Zikril will beat again.

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Plot Keywords:

gay interest | male rear nudity | male nudity | homophobia | gay kiss | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

Mexico Netherlands

Language:

Spanish English

Release Date:

28 July 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

I Dream in Another Language

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$810, 30 July 2017

Gross USA:

$2,739

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$64,563

Company Credits

Production Co:

Revolver Amsterdam, Agencia SHA, Alebrije Cine y Video

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Zicril language, which is prominently used throughout the movie, was specifically created for the production.

User Reviews

Very interesting first half leads to so-so second half, but i still thought it was a good idea.

Saw this film at the very last minute without knowing a thing about it beyond the one or two line description that the cashier gave me at the theater showing it. I was standing there and it was about to start, and I asked what's it about--and her response was enough to make me hand money over to see it at literally a moment's notice, so you know you got an interesting idea if your brief synopsis is interesting enough to hook someone like that. (Basically two people who hate each other are the last two people on Earth to speak this one language and this linguist who's interested in preserving the language has to somehow convince these two men to start speaking to one another again which of course isn't easy)

The film follows this guy who is very interested in trying to preserve this rapidly dying language in the very photogenic San Isidro area of Mexico. There are at the film's beginning only three people in the world who speak this particular dialect, and so the guy who is a linguist tries his best to record what he can of it, and possibly try and learn a handful of words himself to try and keep the language alive as it was, and these two other people who make up the last people on Earth who speak this language are former best friends who have not spoken to one another in over 50 years, and bear a huge grudge against one another for reasons that will eventually be made clear during the course of the movie. Meanwhile our leading man ends up starting a relationship with the granddaughter/caretaker of one of these two men, and the two of them plot together to try and unite these two former friends so as to try and preserve what they can of the dying out language. Its a cute enough premise, and as a backdrop to a love story for the linguist and the granddaughter its not a half bad love story as well.

The imagery of this movie is very good, and the way the material is presented at first made me think we might be getting some sort of off beat comedy along the lines of Aki Kurismaki or Jim Jarmusch, but the film's tone quickly veers more towards the melodramatic than humorous as the film's main story-line gets going. Its an OK film on the whole, and I think if people can embrace the metaphysical aspects of the film's big climactic sequence, they might end up enjoying the film's last half hour a bit more than I did. I wasn't prepared for the film to veer into the metaphysical the way it did, although I appreciated it, it reminded me a little bit of the TV series "Northern Exposure" in that sense, in fact the whole premise itself was very "Northern Expsoure" like which may in fact be what made me decide to see it just on a sheer moment's notice. (about that shift into metaphysical--without giving anything away i'll just say that the film's depiction of what happens to the dying as they um lay dying was interesting to contemplate afterwards, it'd be nice to think that that's what happens! I thought it was neat, but it doesn't quite track with the literal way the story was presenting itself in that first hour or so...but still i give the film credit for at least changing itself up in a unique way.)

I do look forward to seeing what the writer/director of this does in the future tho, there are some sequences here that are very beautifully shot, and i think the scenery is just very, very well captured. Its worth checking out if you get the chance to see it, but well like I said, after a great first half or so, i think the film veers into melodrama terrain, and i think the film kind of writes itself into a corner at one point, like after the big reveal is revealed, I wasn't entirely sure where the film was left to go to, but its still more than interesting enough to hold your attention or fancy (as in flight of) on the whole.