Last night Tonya and I experienced another dose of Calgary culture first-hand, reaffirming my great affection for this city's arts community. We attended the first annual Calgary Latin Wave, a petite film festival featuring the year's best movies from Latin America. The festival is a joint venture between Fundación PROA and the Calgary International Film Festival.
We were privileged to see The Secret In Their Eyes (El Secreto De Sus Ojos), which won this year's Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It's an amazing work from Argentine director Juan José Campanella and was shown in Spanish with English subtitles.
The movie is simply amazing. Campanella's creation features a compelling story, fascinating characters and a great score. There are scenes of unspeakable violence, sardonic humour and a touching, understated love story that interweave effortlessly throughout the film. Rarely have I been so incredibly pleased at watching a movie. Our fellow patrons applauded vigourously at the conclusion, which is something you don't often experience at a cinema these days.
And the fact that the festival was so well done, and right here in our back yard, made it all the more enjoyable. As this was the first year of the festival, next year is not yet a certainty. But the showing we attended was very patronized by our fellow Calgarians, so here's hoping they return again next year!
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