In this Mexican film “Heli”, director Amat Escalante narrates a regular story of a family whose world is savaged by a drug cartel. Although the film is mostly brutal and senseless, you relate to this troubling story because of its neo-realistic standpoint. A depressing insight into a poor family makes for partly uneasy and occasionally powerful viewing in Heli, Amat Escalante’s third film following “Sangre” in 2005 and “Los bastardos” in 2008.
Heli, a poor young man who works at a local Automobile factory and lives with his wife, their daughter, his 12-year old sister and his father. His sister Estela is in a relationship with the 17 year-old Beto, a police cadet, currently undergoing grueling training. In a bid to impress Estela and to fund their running away together, Beto steals a large amount of cocaine and the repercussions of his choice are felt not just by him but Heli and his whole family.
A frightening sequence which opens the film involving a hanging over a motorway gives us an early sense that this will not be one easy story to watch and forget within minutes. It forces the viewer to take a plunge into the film’s extremely disturbing narrative. As Escalante presents on one atrocious abuse after another, one gets the feelings that he is exploited in his attempt to tell us a realistic tale. He, however, with co-screenwriter Gabriel Reyes, ensures that most scenarios have a purpose and are never simple aggravation.
In a torture sequence a young man’s genital is lit on fire in the presence of a group of kids who are witnessing and partaking in the crime. The kids have no idea why they are asked to beat the man with a cricket bat. All this is happening whilst an Xbox game is playing on a screen in the background. There are two things you could quickly infer from this scene – the disturbing impact of the drugs trade in Mexico and the penetration of technology to one of the smallest countries in the world.
The documentary style of filmmaking takes a very naturalistic and uncomplicated approach to the cinematography, with extremely long takes often making viewing not so comfortable. But this style is often complemented with some lonely extraordinary shots which sometimes heighten the overall impact of a scene.
“Heli”, which even though is a bleak journey into the suffering of few characters, is a viscerally brutal and unforgiving film worth your time.
Note: This review was originally written here
Rating: 3.5 on 5