Chuquiago
Item
Title / Título (Original)
Chuquiago
Director
Release Date / Fecha de estreno
1977
Language / Idioma
Spanish / español
Indigenous / indígena
Country / País
Production Company / Compañía de Producción
Grupo Ukamau (Bolivia)
Description / Descripción
La ciudad de La Paz (Chuquiago) es escenario de cuatro historias. Isico es el niño que llega del campo a la gran ciudad, sus deseos de aprender, de conocer la inmensa ciudad quedan atrapados al ser sometido a la explotación, lleva la pesada carga de la sociedad. Johnny el joven de la clase baja, viste a la moda, usa melena y trata de escapar a su humilde origen, a sus raices, su meta es salir hacia el país del norte, le molesta seguir la tradición familiar de bailar año tras año en la fiesta del Gran Poder. Carloncho el funcionario público de clase media, trabaja como empleado público para mantener a su familia y lleva una vida paralela de amigos, parrandas, y prostitutas, es en cierto modo el escape a su mediocridad, a la realidad de no poder aspirar a algo mejor en la vida. Patricia es hija de una familia rica pero con ideales revolucionarios, lo que le enfrenta a su familia. En una ciudad dividida y clasista termina negando sus ideales al casarse con alguien a quien no ama pero que pertenece a su misma clase social. Chuquiago es el film más taquillero de la historia del cine boliviano. (NativeAmericanFilms.org)
The city of La Paz (Chuquiago) is the setting for four different storylines. Isico is a child arriving to the big city from the countryside. His desire to learn about and discover the immense city is trampled as he is subjected to exploitation and must carry the heavy burden of society. Johnny is a young man who dresses fashionably and wears his hair long; he desperately wants to escape the lower class and forget his Aymara roots by leaving his country and fleeing to the north. He is annoyed by his family's insistence that he dance every year at the feast of the Great Power. Carloncho is a middle class public official who works as a government employee to support his family. He also leads a parallel life, partying with his friends and prostitutes. His secret lifestyle provides an escape from his mediocrity and the reality of not being able to aspire to something better in life. Patricia, the daughter of a wealthy family, holds revolutionary ideals which leads to confrontation with her family. In a divided and classist society, she ends up rejecting these ideas by marrying someone she does not love but who belongs to her social class. Chuquiago is the biggest box-office film in Bolivian film history. (Translated by Andrew Toth)
Category / Categoría
Subject Coverage / Tema
Cinematic Period / Periodo cinematográfico
Available at
Collection
Citation
“Chuquiago,” Cinegogía, accessed May 3, 2024, https://cinegogia.omeka.net/items/show/580.