Cinema
El Sombrerón
Synopsis
In a village, cattle thieves pass off their thefts as the work of the Sombrerón, the little man in the big hat of legend. The priest, Father Juan, then tells of his own encounter with the real Sombrerón: a man who came late one evening to his church to confess his sins, those of a thief in love with a girl who did not want him. The story is nested in two flashbacks, among serenades, rancheras and village dances.
Context
The film was shot in sixteen millimetre, in black and white, by Guatemala Films, the company of the three partners, which had just co-produced the previous year's film. It adapts the radio play that the director's brother had devoted to the legend. The story pits the Sombrerón, a young man and the young woman they both love against one another; according to the legend, the revenant braids the manes of animals and rides them all night until they are exhausted. A database attributes the film to the previous year's director, which the other sources contradict.
Who it is for
A Spanish-language film from Guatemala, rich in local expressions, interrupted by long musical sequences that slow the narrative.
Prizes and reception
Regarded as the first entirely Guatemalan sound feature film, it is the oldest surviving sound film of the country.
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