DAUGHTER OF THE LAKE (Ernesto Cabellos Damián, Peru). 87 minutes. Rating: NN
In Cajamarca, in the Peruvian Andes, Nélida Ayay Chilón stands against the companies that want to mine her land and the lake near which she’s made her home for the gold deposits detected beneath the soil. Her struggle to alert the media, unite her neighbours and resist intimidation is undermined somewhat by director Ernesto Cabellos Damián’s insistence on a painfully naive dramatic device, repeatedly filming Nelida standing sadly at the lakeshore while her elaborate prayers to “Mother Water” play on the soundtrack.
Her prayers are clearly intended to help the audience connect emotionally to the urgent issues of native sovereignty, land rights and corporate manipulation of the state. But the gimmick just gets more frustrating every time the movie trots it out.
Apr 28, 8:45 pm, Scotiabank 7 Apr 30, 6:15 pm, TIFF 4 May 2, 4:30 pm, Scotiabank 7
