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Battle in Heaven

Batalla en el cielo

Mexico, France, Germany, Belgium

2005

98 Min
Color
1.78:1
Spanish
  • Currently 3.4/5 Stars.
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DIR Carlos Reygadas

EXEC Hamish McAlpine

PROD Philippe Bober, Susanne Marian, Carlos Reygadas, Jaime Romandia, Daniela Schneider

SCR Carlos Reygadas

DP Diego Martínez Vignatti

CAST Marcos Hernández, Anapola Mushkadiz, Bertha Ruiz, David Bornstein, Rosalinda Ramírez

ED Adoración G. Elipe, Benjamin Mirguet, Carlos Reygadas, Nicolas Schmerkin

PROD DES Elsa Ruiz

MUSIC John Tavener

SOUND Sergio Diaz

Cannes (In Competition), Toronto (Contemporary World Cinema), Helsinki, Karlovy Vary (Horizons), Mar del Plata, Sundance (Spectrum), Rotterdam (Sturm und Drang)

Synopsis

A working-class man named Marcos and his wife kidnap a baby for ransom money, but it goes tragically wrong when the infant dies. In another world is Ana, the daughter of the general for whom he drives, who does sexual acts to any man for pleasure. Marcos confesses his guilt to her in his troubled search for relief, and then finds himself on his knees amid the multitude of believers moving slowly toward the Basilica in honor of the Lady of Guadalupe. –IMDb

Director

Original

Carlos Reygadas

Carlos Reygadas Castillo is a Mexican filmmaker known for his three films Batalla en el Cielo, Japón and Stellet Licht (Luz Silenciosa). After Batalla en el Cielo he was known for his raw depiction of sex on his films and the use of old or ugly characters. With Stellet Licht Carlos competed once more for the Palm d’or at the 2007 edition of the Cannes Film Festival, and has become one of the most prominent writer/directors of modern cinema.

In 1987 Carlos Reygadas discovered his filmic passion after watching the films Andrei Tarkovsky. He studied Law in Mexico, afterwards he specialized in Armed Conflicts in London and worked for the United Nations.

In 1997 Carlos participated in a film competition in Belgium with his first short film, Maxhumain. Shortly after that, in 1999 he began writing his first long film: Japón, which he didn’t began to shoot until 2001. The film was presented at the Rotterdam Film Festival and received a special metion on the Caméra d’Or award at… read more

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Displaying 4 of 17 wall posts.
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Andrew Infante

3May13

At times it almost borders on becoming some cliche "Art-House" film but I feel Reygadas pulls it off.

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bluesoul

4Nov12

I absolutely love this movie. Everything is in its place. Reygadas is a jewel of modern cinema.

Sean P likes this

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film_lies101

19Aug12

Begins with perhaps, the most artful blowjob ever filmed (No, I don't count the latest Wes Anderson film). It also contains some the grossest nudity this side of a John Waters film. There are some great shots, blah blah blah. Ultimately I did not give a shit about the characters or understood their motivations. Yeah, there is some flimsy commentary about the bourgeois's complex relationship w/ working classes

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Bruno Leal and 2 others like this

chanandre, Slow Immersion

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Now in theaters: "Silent Light" (Reygadas, Mexico)

By Vadim Rizov on January 8, 2009

Silent Light is Carlos Reygadas' third and most overtly accomplished film; I also find it his least convincing. A healthy degree of skepticism

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The Second Coming

By Judicia​l Joe on June 7, 2012
Turning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere…

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By Diezmar​tinez on August 2, 2009

Después de haber provocado polémicas en Cannes 2005 de donde regresó con las manos vacías y después de haberse estrenado en nuestro país con más pena (taquillera) que gloria (crítica), ha…  read review

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Battle in Heaven (2005)--Utterly Confused

41 posts by 10 people about 1 month ago