The Last Colony

The financial crisis currently facing Puerto Rico lends particular urgency to this documentary by Juan Agustín Márquez. While sketching the island's history since the United States seized control during the Spanish-American War of 1898, the film centers on the plebiscite of 2012, in which voters (Puerto Ricans have been American citizens since 1917) were asked to express a preference for the future of their homeland: national independence, U.S. statehood, or continuance of commonwealth or territorial status. Much of the footage is devoted to the adherents of the three options offering opinions on why their choice is superior to the others and pointing out the flaws in the alternatives. As is often the case with political discourse, the arguments here shed little light on the issue—although statehood prevailed by a small but real margin, the number of ballots left blank almost equaled those in favor of either statehood or territorial status (independence lagged far behind). Due to the ambiguous result, Congress declined to make any change, and federal funds have been set aside for yet another plebiscite in the future. Despite the fact that it reaches no definitive conclusion, The Last Colony deftly illustrates the continuing incoherence of U.S. policy toward Puerto Rico, while also underscoring the need for its population—and the American government—to reach consensus about how best to resolve a festering problem. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)