Neruda is a really interesting take on the biopic genre. It pits the titular Colombian poet (who lived a fascinating life) against the inspector chasing after him for the anti-Communist government. Here's the question, what is history and what is a story? Much of the production design leads you to believe that they are living out a story--the obvious moving backdrop (make no mistake, it was not just a budgetary restraint, every choice was made quite purposefully: the Senate meeting in the bathroom, the quick changes of scenery, and the cinematographic coloring). Gael Garcia Bernal may have top billing, but is he the main character? He does not play Neruda, but the inspector. Is he merely a supporting character in the life of Neruda? He fights for himself to be the protagonist of his own story. The climactic escape scene through the snowy Andes Mountain pass is wonderfully cinematic. It gave me an ominous McTeague kind of feeling, though it doesn't quite end like that. It does look like the snowy landscape of The Hateful Eight. I love Bernal in everything he does. This is no exception.
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