Retablo is a coming-of-age film about Segundo and his family's life. The movie is a reflection of Alvaro Delgado Aparicio on Peru's rural life, released in 2017. It is only fair to disclose that Delgado is a mestizo filmmaker portraying the lives of indigenous people. His view on the complexities of their ways is filtered by the distance between himself and the communities.
However, Delgado tries to draw an almost-real picture, starting from the language spoken to the stars of the motion picture. The thread element of the story is the retablo, a folk art piece that displays iconography from the catholic church. Retablos are often placed above altars at churches. Families or parishes commission these pieces as oblations to religious characters.
A retablo simultaneously acts as a recording device of a specific time -in the way a photograph works. An Andean retablo emulates life in the sense of the aesthetic, the content of the scenes, and the palette used. One can easily see the same colors and frugality of the settings by taking a quick look at the landscape, mercados, holidays, and homes of the Andes. The movie acts the same way. Even if it is a crude representation, the cinematography still makes it beautiful -even when it is heartbreaking to watch.
