JAUJA World Cinema

Renowned filmmaker Lisandro Alonso’s penetrating puzzle of a film marks a bold new chapter for the enigmatic auteur. Its prologue referencing a mythical land of happiness that has eluded all who search for it, the quixotic tale unfolds with a deceptive simplicity that hides its deeper meanings. A 19th-century Danish general (played with smoldering ferocity by the always-engaging Viggo Mortensen, who also produces) must search for his runaway daughter and her lover through the desolate Patagonian wilderness, before his fellow soldier – a lascivious sort with nefarious intentions – tracks her down. Alone in the wilderness, the general’s metaphysical journey begins, one in which obstacles transcend time and space, and fact and fiction blur freely. Deeply textured, JAUJA offers infinitely enriching pleasures to those adventurous enough to seek them.