Máncora

The independent film Máncora from Peru is poignant but in a way also light. It's linear, yet full of twists and turns, and it ultimately delivers a sharp message.

Máncora beings in Lima with an upper-class twentysomething named Santi in the thralls of a "fuck it all" period. He's disenchanted, aggressive, and withdrawn. Then, a shattering event: his father has committed suicide. Unable to come to terms with his own behavior and clearly feeling the guilt of his father's death, Santi leaves for the beaches of Máncora, a day's drive from the city, with his half-sister Ximena and her husband Íñigo.

While Santi begins to center himself in the tabula rasa state of Máncora, he cannot shake his aggressive streak. An altercation at a dance seems like a typical bar fight until several days later, when his adversaries ambush him on the docks and push him overboard, leaving him for dead. As his life flashes before his eyes, Santi finally decides to transform into a nurturing, warm person and surges up to the surface to begin his productive life.

Máncora engages the viewer in a way not unlike The Motorcycle Diaries. The peripheral visions of the city, the countryside, and the people from all walks of life in Perú lend it a certain journey motif. Here, however, the central plot driver is Santi coming to terms with his flaws and his purpose in life, so the literal journey is secondary.

Máncora is not just a character development piece. It's also a saga of adventure, sibling rivalry, fun, and passion. The characters are both beautiful and flawed. With a cast featuring Enrique Murciano from Without A Trace, Elsa Pataky, and Jason Day (not bad for an Indie film) you'd expect nothing less.