"Dias de Santiago" is a disturbing film. We are taken by its creator, Josue Mendez, to the mean streets of Lima to follow a young man that works as a driver of a taxi. Santiago's home life is not exactly a happy one. The mother is a long suffering woman who doesn't do anything to rebel against her husband and what life has given her.
Santiago, we learn, joined the army at an early age. His tour of duty is over, so he came back to Lima, where he is not prepared to experience his new reality. While Santiago stayed basically a good guy, most of his former colleagues have turned to crime because the atmosphere they found once out of fighting the war with Ecuador.
The director, Josue Mendez, uses a mixture of black and white with color photography to emphasize what is going on in Santiago's mind as he faces different moments in his life. Mr. Mendez got an amazing performance from Pietro Sibille, who makes Santiago real throughout the film. This young actor, who seems to be a non professional is a natural and surprises us by the range he displays in the film. Mr. Sibille is the main reason for watching this film that shows the underside of a society where it seems no hope exists.
Santiago, we learn, joined the army at an early age. His tour of duty is over, so he came back to Lima, where he is not prepared to experience his new reality. While Santiago stayed basically a good guy, most of his former colleagues have turned to crime because the atmosphere they found once out of fighting the war with Ecuador.
The director, Josue Mendez, uses a mixture of black and white with color photography to emphasize what is going on in Santiago's mind as he faces different moments in his life. Mr. Mendez got an amazing performance from Pietro Sibille, who makes Santiago real throughout the film. This young actor, who seems to be a non professional is a natural and surprises us by the range he displays in the film. Mr. Sibille is the main reason for watching this film that shows the underside of a society where it seems no hope exists.