Oedipus Mayor

Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez co-wrote this 1996 Colombian film, which updates the well-known ancient Greek tragedy to a contemporary political setting within Latin America. Here, the warrior Oedipus is the idealist Edipo, a young mayor of a small town in the Andes who is sent to negotiate a peace treaty with the various warring parties destroying the countryside, and in the process falls in love with the widow of a powerful warlord. Anyone even vaguely familiar with Sophocles' original will know the widow's true identity, which admittedly dilutes the dramatic impact of this tale, but the film is otherwise blessed with vigorous direction from Jorge Ali Triana, stunning cinematography by Rodrigo Prieto (Brokeback Mountain, Babel), and a passionate performance by Jorge Perrugoria in the lead role. DVD extras include a “making-of” documentary. Highly recommended. (P. Hall)