Mara Polgovsky & Eugenio Polgovsky
Mexico, Switzerland | 2022 | 64 min
Swiss Premiere
Language : Spanish
Subtitles : English, French
For seven days, Eugenio Polgovsky and his five-year-old daughter observe a dove that broods, whatever the weather, over her nest built on a jumble of electric wires. Malintzin 17, a posthumous work by the Mexican filmmaker, compares two displays of parental affection and devotion, gracefully composing an intimate visual experience of lockdown.
For seven days and seven nights, Eugenio Polgovsky and his five-year-old daughter Milena observe a dove that broods, whatever the weather, over a nest settled on a jumble of electric wires. Shot during the lockdown, Malintzin 17 thus gracefully compares two displays of parental affection and devotion: there is the filmmaker, who makes the most of a virus’s temporary interruption of the world and of time to discuss essential questions about nature with his child (“is it a robot?”), and to transpose this unique period into a sensitive visual experience. Opposite them, outside the window, is this bird which, come rain or cold, never falters in its task. This posthumous work by the Mexican filmmaker – cherished by cinephiles and critics – is edited by his sister, also formerly his screenwriter, assistant and editor. Malintzin 17 is first and foremost, inevitably, a testament to the love of a father departed much too soon, and of a sister for her brother; while, implicitly, emerges an ecological manifesto rooted in attention.
Émilie Bujès
