In 1934, Bolivia is at war with Paraguay. Liborio and Ticona and other Bolivian indigenous soldiers are lost in the hell of the Chaco, under the commandment of German Captain Kundt. They're looking for the Paraguayan enemy that they haven't seen for months, and that they will never find. They leave together in a search that will make them realize, progressively, the destiny they have been pushed into and the inevitable condition of a defeated troop. They're walking like shadows, wandering forever in the middle of dust and silence.
Cinematography
The Chaco desert becomes a character — vast, hostile, beautiful.
Acting
Indigenous non-actors bring devastating authenticity.
Direction
Mondaca refuses to give you the war movie you expect.
Director
Diego Mondaca
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The Chaco War killed 50,000+ Bolivians, mostly indigenous conscripts used as cannon fodder — Bolivia still hasn't reconciled with this genocide.
Director Diego Mondaca cast actual Guaraní and Quechua speakers from the Chaco region; many had family who died in the war.
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