Directed by Sabrina Muhate and written by Dariela Pérez Hernández, a group of Zapotec women are threatened with dispossession, intimidation, and violence from the local authorities. Led by Guiexhuba, a strong resilient determined woman, they will risk their lives to defend themselves and their livelihood even if they have to face the devil himself. Starring: Claudia Santiago, Norma Pablo, Humberto Busto, Moisés Cardez, Sótera Cruz, Antonio Monroi, Gabriel Pascual and Yan Perrouin.
There are some films where going for a simple, real, honest understated style is going to do so much more justice than pushing something stylistic and Guiexhuba is one of them. It has a strong commitment to remaining grounded throughout, which lets the aesthetic feel hugely relatable and everyday. The same goes for the way that the film moves and progresses, it’s slow and thoughtful, which builds an underlying tension, growing as time passes.
However, it could be argued that the writing isn’t quite strong enough to back that up. The concept itself is great but the way that it plays out lacks edge and danger, when there’s so much potential for it. It felt as though Guiexhuba needed to up the ante, to throw itself further into the risk, darkness, casual cruelty, corruption and dominating patriarchy that lie within this story. The result being that ultimately, it can feel unsatisfying to see that rich potential go unfulfilled.
In that sense, the performances from the leading ensemble of women can only go so far without that layered space to really bring them to life. That said, they are still wonderful and the performances, particularly Norma Pablo’s, each have emotional depth to offer, even at their most modest. The tone that the cast bring makes that scaled back style to the direction and cinematography work even better. It also makes it even more of a shame to not see them take it all the way and really drive this story home, as the ending it landed on was somewhat underwhelming.
Guiexhuba begins with a superb idea but the execution feels like it doesn’t make the most of that. There’s a tension, darkness and threat within this story that had much more to offer than the end result is willing to give. The leading women all give layered performances which are filled with strength and resilience; Norma Pablo stands out among them as a brilliantly complex portrayal. There’s a number of choices that sent the film down the right road but it ends up in a less poignant place than expected.
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