La teta asustada

La teta asustada is not, quite understandably, everyone's cup of tea. It is a slow, pensive, drawn-out film that almost feels like an ominous daydream. There is much that goes unsaid, and if you are not familiar with the Sendero Luminoso insurgency in Peru and the enormous amount of political violence perpetrated by both rebel and government forces, the underlying forces driving the film will not make that much sense. This is particularly the case with the rather disturbing opening scene and the graphic account of the rape of the protagonist's (Fausta) mother. There are also dynamics of class, gender, language, and race at work in this film, and the interplay between them is best understood with some prior knowledge of Peru, or Latin America more generally. The opening scene and the revelation that Fausta has placed a potato in her vagina to protect her from rape would be enough to turn many people off from the beginning of the film, and for good reason. Yet this film, to its credit, in my view, refuses to be anything other than what it is – an exploration of the legacy of trauma and fear of the Sendero Luminoso insurgency and the violence that came along with it. I enjoyed this film, but I appreciate films that are slow, melancholy, and leave plenty of time for pondering. It is not necessarily a feel-good movie, but felt more like a gloomy, ambiguous French film. It had more sad moments than happy ones, although that is only fitting of a film with such a dark topic at its heart. Yet there was something bizarrely hopeful about the film, and regardless of how bad Fausta's situation may have seemed, she showed admirable courage, and a faint light does appear at the end of the tunnel.

Fausta Isidora (Magaly Solier) is a weird young woman that lives permanently scared in a poor community in Lima. Her mother was raped by many men when she was pregnant of Fausta, and raised her daughter with a morbid fear of men. When her mother dies, Fausta has a bleeding and faints. Her uncle takes her to the doctor that finds that she keeps a potato inside her vagina to protect her against intercourse. Her uncle tells to the doctor that in accordance with the lore of the locals, she has a disease called "La Teta Assustada" (meaning "The Frightened Teat" in English) transmitted by the milk of an abused pregnant woman. Fausta decides to bury her mother in her home village, but neither she nor her uncle has the necessary amount for the coffin and the transportation. Fausta starts working as housemaid in the manor of a pianist to raise the necessary money; she befriends the gardener that helps her and Fausta finally resolves her issues.

"La Teta Assustada" is an exotic but boring and unpleasant low budget movie. The story is developed in slow-pace and probably will please viewers of the First World that maybe have never seen a slum and poor people like the dweller of Fausta's community. Magaly Solier has a great performance and her exotic beauty is impressive. The translation of the title of this film to English ("The Milk of Sorrow") is ridiculous since the correct translation would be "The Frightened Teat". The summary in IMDb from Pusan International Film Festival is ridiculous and the author has certainly not understood the story; or maybe the translation from Spanish was wrong. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "A Teta Assustada" ("The Frightened Teat")

A realistic portrayal of the impoverished suburbia of Lima, Peru is the frame-set for this fantastic story. Fausta, daughter of a woman raped by terrorists some 25 years ago, assists her mother's death and decides to take her remains back to her hometown, in the high Andes. But, apart from having to work hard to collect the money she needs for it, Fausta has a reason, deep inside, that prevents her from enjoying life or accepting her outstanding physical beauty as a normal girl.

Mastery at low-budget cinematic skill should be credited to Bollywood (the Mumbai-based Hindi language film industry) films, which may not be the most groundbreaking in technical or screen writing terms, but contain music in the form of song-and-dance numbers woven into the script in order to appeal to all segments of the audience and maximise box office receipts. Since Hollywood's multi-million budgets would never have helped shoot realistic and colourful, but rough Brazilian imagery, 'Central Station' (1998) and 'Cidade de Deus' (2002) garnered indisputable acclaim at renowned film festivals after being funded on their own. The example set by off-Hollywood movie makers' efforts have become heroic in countries where movie industry budgets are, to say the least, scarce.

This is the case for LTA. It could have been more on par to Danny Boyle's 'Slumdog Millionaire' if it wasn't for the Peruvian-Spanish meagre budget available to Peruvian young director Claudia Llosa. If you expect to see acting beaus or beautés, famous screenwriters and crew, expensive car explosions or CGI, go elsewhere. LTA is neat magic-realism, a territory where people may be poor but not disgusting, where their houses are mere recreation centres for fantasy and everyday life to play happily together. Only time will tell if the trend keeps up, spreads globally, and ends up being called Globbywood.

This is a well-told tale of hope where only two professional actors are involved. And this was as clear to Berlinale judges as it is for the general public -those with a thirst for veritable, honest, witty craftsmanship at film-making.

Claudia Llosa writes a peculiar, but captivating story of a young Peruvian girl living in a constant world of fear on the outskirts of Lima. Fausta is believed to be suffering from a rare disease, "La teta asustada," or the "Milk of Sorrow," which was transmitted from her mother's breast milk after she was raped by terrorists during the time of Sendero Luminoso. Facing her mother's death, Fausta is forced to overcome her fear and work in the Big House of a limeña musician. While both the music and filming are stunning, I feel that the film lacks much action or thick plot. I found it to be more of a journey, one that led Fausta from her fear to a glimpse of her freedom. Furthermore, as a viewer who has lived in Peru, the film was very nostalgic for me and I felt that it portrayed Lima and the "pueblos" with a profound sincerity.

If you are looking for a poetic and beautiful journey of a story, this film is exactly that.

Writer/director Claudia Llosa loosely adapts the premise of old-time classics 'The Little Mermaid' and 'Faust' to contemporary Peru. Fausta, beautifully played by Magaly Solier, is a solitary, indigenous girl whose heart is gripped by fear. Her mother, who we see on her deathbed at the start of the film, was raped and scarred for life by The Shining Path (a radical Maoist organization that terrorized Peru during the 80s and early 90s). According to their indigenous culture, the terror felt by Fausta's mother was passed on to her through breastfeeding, a condition they call 'The Milk of Sorrow' (in Spanish, 'La Teta Asustada', which translates to 'The Frightened Tit'). Fausta is deeply suspicious of people around her, particularly men, and expresses her repressed emotions only through singing, as she performs her daily chores. Desperately in need for money to bury her dead mother, she begins to work as a housekeeper for Aida, a musician who is preparing for a concert and becomes interested in her songs of sorrow.

Llosa observes the social realities of Latin America (post-colonialism, class division, political violence), but avoids providing facile solutions. Instead, she focuses her attention on Fausta's more personal need for spiritual freedom. She does so with quiet, subtle humor and an eye for striking, poetic imagery.

I highly recommend watching this Academy Award nominee for Best Foreign Language Film and winner of the Berlin International Film Festival.