A "retablo" can be a religious painting, usually one done in the Catholic faith. A "retablo" though is usually a table or shelf that is placed behind an altar in a church. That shelf is typically reserved for some kind of decoration like a painting or a piece of sculpture or sculptures like figurines of Jesus Christ or other religious characters. The artwork originated in Spain and was spread throughout Latin America, particularly in Mexico but also other Spanish-speaking countries. A resurgence of the artwork sprung up in Peru where this film is set. In fact, this film was the official submission from Peru to the 92nd Academy Awards for Best International Feature. It didn't get nominated, but it did win a Teddy Award at the 68th Berlinale. The Teddy Award is one that recognizes LGBTQ content.
What's notable is that this film centers on what could be called Native Americans or Indigenous people. There aren't that many films about LGBTQ people who are also Indigenous people. This film, directed and co-written by Alvaro Delgado-Aparicio, centers on a family that is descended from Indigenous people in Peru. We know that they're Indigenous because they speak the language called Ayacucho Quechua, which is an Indigenous language. Yet, the people who speak it live in southern Peru, in the Andes mountains, and Delgado-Aparicio's camera does a great job of capturing that mountainous area. His camera mostly gathers wide-shots that are static and long. The pacing is slow and deliberate in order to allow us to absorb the atmosphere and area.
Amiel Cayo stars as Noé Páucar, a man who lives in this rural area in Peru. He lives next to a farm that handles a lot of sheep and goats, but Noé isn't a farmer himself. Noé is an artisan. He makes artwork, specifically the titular objects. Most of his time is spent crafting the figurines, which seems to be made of clay. It's a delicate and time-staking craft. He arranges the figurines in a cabinet that's sometimes 3-layers or could be a meter high. He doesn't have a car, so he normally has to carry the cabinet to the dirt road and hitchhike on the back of a truck to get to the closest village or town to sell his artwork.
It's revealed that while Noé is hitchhiking, he engages in same-sex relations. Despite having a wife and son, Noé apparently is sneaking out and having intimate contact with other men. He still has sex with his wife, often at her insistence, so it's unclear if he's a closeted gay man, maybe bisexual or maybe gay-for-pay. The film isn't really told from his point-of-view, so we don't really have that much insight into his head, other than by implication.
Junior Béjar Roca co-stars as Segundo Páucar, the son of Noé, a teenage boy, possibly 14-years-old who is a single child living with his parents. He's a reserved boy, a strong silent type. He spends most of his days by his father's side. He's basically his father's apprentice, studying and learning how to make his father's artwork. His father is called "maestro" by everyone in the village or town, so he sees the respect and he shares it. He goes everywhere with his father, as he virtually idolizes him. Things change when he sees his father engaging in a gay sex act.
This happens about a third of the way into the film and the rest of the film is about how Segundo deals with seeing what he saw. He mostly deals with it silently. Segundo barely speaks when the film begins, but, after he witnesses the gay sex act, he becomes even more mute. Delgado-Aparicio's direction becomes doubly important, as we learn visually how Segundo grapples with his secret revelation. How he grapples with it is akin to what people say are the five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.
Yet, it's all handled without dialogue and a lot of inferences are involved. One inference is that Segundo who wants to be like his dad might also have possible same-sex attraction like his father. One scene has Segundo attend a festival or fiesta in the village or town. During that festival, a group of shirtless boys compete in a fighting sport where they're in a circle and striking each other with whips. Segundo stares at them and the camera focuses on their shirtless bodies in a way that suggests same-sex attraction. There's similar leering at a soccer game with shirtless boys. There is a disturbing moment where Segundo sneaks into the bedroom of a young girl and seems as though he might rape her, not out of attraction but out of trying to prove something.
In all those cases, he seems to be struggling with his sexuality. It could also be the son trying to understand his father in the wake of homophobia coming at him from every direction. The town shuns Noé and even inflicts violence upon Noé. The children who are Segundo's age or thereabout bully Segundo. Segundo's mother even wants her son to turn his back on his father. Segundo's choice would suggest that he has an understanding of his father on a deeper level that maybe he can't admit in this conservative environment. His choice though could also be just an expression of unbridled, paternal love.
Not Rated but for mature audiences.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 41 mins.
Available on DVD and VOD.
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