Camino (2008)

Pretty Good

From my favorite movies..

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

I generally dislike the movies which are inspired by true stories about people who suffered a cruel illness, because I consider them to be a vulgar exploitation of the suffering of others for the entertainment of the audience and economical benefit to the producing companies. However, I think the film Camino is an exception, because even though it deals with the fight against a devastating illness, it also has an unexpected narrative deepness and tacit commentaries about controversial subjects which will be undoubtedly be interpreted in different ways by every spectator.In Camino, the faith in God from the main character and her mother is so intense that it goes beyond any rational level, even provoking behaviours which some people could consider as inhuman. And that is where the biggest value from this movie resides on. By soberly presenting that facet from the religious extremism, it makes us think about the price some people pay for their faith. In fact, one of the most interesting aspects from Camino is what it does not say...in other words, I am talking about all those tacit commentaries and significant pauses which subtly express what we are thinking, with a null level of dramatic artifice or ideological sermons. In summary, the film does not "say" too much about the subject it deals with; it simply provides spaces for us to insert our own ideology, leaving the verdict about the characters and their attitudes to our judgement.And that is the reason why Camino is so difficult to evaluate on an objective level. Any reaction this movie can generate will be based on our point of view, and as well as some people will be moved by the touching devotion from a girl with a pure spirit and an extraordinary nobility, other ones will think that she suffered the most horrible child abuse from her mother, who washed her brain in order to unquestionably accept a series of superstitions which blind the reason and bring a fake sensation of order and purpose into a chaotic and unpredictable world. On a similar way, some people will perceive the Opus Dei members who are interested in the main character as an easy candidate for the holiness as villains; and other ones will think they are pious heroes who will channel the suffering from the main character as a spiritual weapon in their fight against evil.And I could keep giving more turns about the multiple interpretations Camino offers, but I will limit myself to say that I found its neutral posture on the subject it deals with to be fascinating, that I liked the performances very much (particularly Mariano Venancio's one), and that I was left emotionally devastated in various scenes. The only thing I can say against this movie is that there are a few scenes which could have been deleted, because they do not add too much to what we already know and they feel a bit dull. However, that minor fail does not avoid me from enthusiastically recommending Camino as an excellent film which makes us to think and even to examine the ideology we have about religion.

I have the pleasure of knowing the Director of this film and was able to see it multiple times during the final edit phase while visiting Spain. The emotional impact of this film is unique to any form of art. The story is about a young girl and her life..and the human drama that tragedy brings to life.The history of this girl is steeped in Opes Dei and her families connection to the church. The film is not and is not meant to be a commentary on this. This film is anything but anti spiritual or anti anything.I hope this film makes it into the international market in spite of its unique and powerful vision. The director Javier Fesser has truly made a stunning film. To me the impact of the film goes beyond entertainment. This is not a light film though it is a positive experience to view it.

Camino is the most intense film I've seen this year. I understand that Opus Dei doesn't like this film. I suppose that the Nazi Party doesn't like "Schindler's List", or the stalinists, or the talibanics, or extreme groups don't like films about them. I mention "Schindler's List", because I feel after Camino like after "Schindler's". Out of the theater, I was knocked by the film, I didn't know what's hour, what to do. I was still hooked on the film, and I didn't stop thinking about its characters, its argument, its pictures. Death and sickness and intolerance and dark side of life are inside "Camino", but above all Love and Hope and bright side of life. Sometimes the film is close to horror films (not too close), but another times it has got the joy of a musical (without songs, thank's god). Also, I was born in 1969, and the film presents visual aspects of my mediterranean catholic education. The nuns'school, the typical mass songs, the strict separation between men and women, the old fanatic priests, the dominant mothers and the silent but lover fathers... I enjoy seeing all those pictures of my sentimental education on a screen, and I fear that one of these things exists in present times... And speaking about catholic values and laicism values, my wife is completely agnostic and she says that Freedom in in the film. I'm Catholic believer, and I think that God is in the film. The Church is not only Opus Dei, and the rest of mankind has the right to talk and think about Alexia, the child who inspired the film. If Opus Dei opens a public campaign about Alexia, even with a Youtube Channel, Alexia is now a public figure. Opus Dei cannot order a complete silence for another point of view about this case. But now, after Camino, I love Alexia much more then before.

I recommend this movie not just because provides a great amount of emotions and it's very well edited. I believe this film can give you an accurate and reliable point of view about Opus Dei. It's complicated to explain on images all the psychology which involves the life inside "La Obra", its name in Spanish. For instance, I don't think The Da Vinci Code is faithful to the real Opus Dei, although it shows real practices like the use of "cilicio" and whip. Instead of being too much imaginative "Camino" talks about a real family who tries to understand a painful illness which strikes all their lives. That's when the Opus Dei's fanatic explanation are presented as a way ("camino" in Spanish) of salvation and how all the corporation instigates a distorted view of society in all the family: the sister interned in a center for "numerarios" (like Opus front line soldiers), the mother abandoned herself in pray controlling all the "suspicious" movements which can led to sin, and the father living in the contradiction of loving his children and letting all this happen. I insist, this film is very close to the real Opus Dei, the one from which many of the students on the world are receiving education and values.