The Apostate
(El apóstata)
Frederico Veiroj | Drama, Fiction, Comedy
2014 | 80 minutes | France, Uruguay
An existential comedy about a young man in the increasingly quixotic quest of formally having his name struck from the Catholic church’s baptismal record.
Synopsis
Tamayo knows he needs to change the person he has become under the pressure of his parents’ expectations. His opposition manifests itself in the increasingly quixotic quest of formally having his name struck from the Catholic church’s baptismal record. But finding his own path is very hard and as a first step, it seems helpful to turn his feelings into words. With the innocence of an adolescent - and with the sincerity of someone addressing letters to a friend overseas - Tamayo goes over the weaknesses and little miseries that his family passed on to him. As Tamayo’s correspondence revisits the milestones of his tempestuous past, his wild and tender gaze on the scenery of Madrid - with its streetscapes, office buildings, parks, and altars - reveals his beliefs, his desires, and his turmoil.
Reviews
"Working within a tradition of heightened, impressionistic satire, Veiroj demonstrates a rare aptitude for depicting his distraught protagonist's emotional world." - Yonca Talu, Film Comment Magazine
"Offers a wry absurdist take on existential crisis without resorting to cliche." - Leah Pickett, Chicago Reader
"...inflected with a sense of mischief and wonder that teeters on the edge of the devotional." - José Teodoro, Cinema Scope
"This film is amazingly odd and outrageous." - Javier Porta Fouz, La Nación
Citation
Main credits
Veiroj, Federico (screenwriter)
Veiroj, Federico (film director)
Ogalla, Álvaro (screenwriter)
Ogalla, Álvaro (actor)
Larralde, Marta (actor)
Other credits
Editing, Fernando Franco; cinematography, Arauco Hernández Holz.
Citation
Cataloging
Pragda subjects
Education
Family
Mental Health
Religion + Spirituality
Sociology
Keywords
Clips
Festivals
Toronto International Film Festival; International Film Festival Rotterdam; Rotterdam; San Sebastián International Film Festival - FIPRESCI Prize, Special Mention; São Paulo International Film Festival
DIRECTOR: Frederico Veiroj
NATIONALITY: France, Uruguay
YEAR: 2014
GENRE: Drama, Fiction, Comedy
LANGUAGE: Spanish
COLOR / B&W: Color
GRADE LEVEL: Middle School, High School, College, Adults
SUBTITLE/CC: AVAILABLE
AUDIO DESCRIPTION: NOT AVAILABLE
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