So there were a lot of things that were great about this movie. It had some awesome commentary on the reality and the struggle of Salvadorians living in the slums, and the harsh behavior of the police and the army on the people. The acting from most of the main characters was pretty great, although most of the army members were very blank and just not very good. Raul Julia did an excellent job, especially in the scenes in which he had to get emotional, although there were a few times in which his performance became a little bit worse in some of the scenes that he was screaming. The prison scene was odd, primarily because the make up was not believable to a dead person. He was supposed to be a man who was beaten to death, tortured until he finally decided to give up. However, the make up was similar to someone who got punched in the face once or twice and got knocked out.
One of the things that restricts this movie, in my opinion, is that everything is just so black and white. The priests and the church are the good guys and then the rich and powerful people are the bad guys. Every single action that they take is therefore extremely predictable because you know what is going to happen as soon as the scene starts. This also makes it so that the only person you can rout for is Romero. There is no struggle, I don't have to make a decision, and I am not challenged as an audience member. This makes the experience extremely one sided and I am left with a feeling of emptiness.
The other problem, although I already mentioned it before, is the actors other than the lead. The extras are pretty bad, and most of the people in the military just have a blank expression and sound like they are just reading their lines. I get it that it really isn't supposed to be about acting but you get the point.
Overall good film, 7/10.
One of the things that restricts this movie, in my opinion, is that everything is just so black and white. The priests and the church are the good guys and then the rich and powerful people are the bad guys. Every single action that they take is therefore extremely predictable because you know what is going to happen as soon as the scene starts. This also makes it so that the only person you can rout for is Romero. There is no struggle, I don't have to make a decision, and I am not challenged as an audience member. This makes the experience extremely one sided and I am left with a feeling of emptiness.
The other problem, although I already mentioned it before, is the actors other than the lead. The extras are pretty bad, and most of the people in the military just have a blank expression and sound like they are just reading their lines. I get it that it really isn't supposed to be about acting but you get the point.
Overall good film, 7/10.