Patagonia (2010)

Excellent but underrated film

I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Marc Evans's "Patagonia" is one of the many movies that focuses on cultures that we don't usually see. In this case, it's Argentina's Welsh community. The movie contains two parallel stories: one is a Welsh couple that goes to Argentina to photograph the Welsh chapel in Patagonia, the other is an elderly Argentine woman who goes to Wales to see her ancestral farm. Both sets of people will have quite the experience.This is one of only two movies that I've seen in which Welsh gets spoken; the other is "Hedd Wyn", about a noted Welsh poet (both movies were the United Kingdom's submission to the Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film). Both movies cast a perceptive eye on the Welsh culture. And in this one, we get to see both the Argentine plains and the Welsh countryside. You'll probably want to go to both countries after seeing it. Outstanding movie.

For me, the parallel story lines worked very well. I would say though, that I might not expect non-Welsh people to enjoy this anywhere near as much. The cinematography both in Argentina and Wales is gorgeous, but the story could maybe be difficult to engage with for others. For a start, it's mostly in Welsh or Spanish. English people rarely respond well to Welsh efforts to assert their culture so don't expect any different here. The part of the story that revolve around the Llyn Celyn reservoir was unexpected and subtly done - but again I wouldn't expect English viewers to understand or respond well to this. Who wants to hear that an ancient Welsh villages were drowned so that England could have more industrial water supplies?I watched this fully expecting to be bored witless but the flipping between the two tales creates a sustainable pace and saved what could have been prosaic stories.Well done Marc Evans!

I agree with some other reviewers that the endings could have been perhaps better conceived, but then I've never seen the perfect film. What was so appealing about this film was the unique combination of Welsh and Latin American cultures, not seen very often. Being a Welshman in a civil partnership with a Paraguayan who has had to come to terms with my Welshness, and all that means, we both watched this film with fond admiration. I must confess, as a Welsh and Spanish speaker, seeing this on television with subtitles I couldn't switch off was confusing as I would rather not see any English in there at all, but I do appreciate for most people that will be necessary to understand one or both of the languages.I won't restate what's previously been said about the landscapes in both countries being shot very well. Essentially we were both left feeling very 'nostalgic' about both Wales and South America.Duffy was a very unexpected jewel in this already-lovely crown. Her Spanish wasn't at all bad, it has to be said, and the song she sings - Desearia - is absolutely gorgeous, we've played it non-stop since seeing the film. She only comes into major play quite late in the film, which is a pity, but it's definitely worth waiting for.This wasn't intended to be a full review of the film, as others have done that so eloquently before me. Instead, more to add my weight to the comments that if you have an attachment to Wales, to South America, or to both, then you WILL find something in this film to capture your heart. If you don't, perhaps it won't be your cup of tea, as the film does tend to capture your emotion rather than your imagination. For us, we'll be watching it again. And again.

Watched this on its Welsh TV premiere as I now live in Wales (although I am not a Welsh speaker). The film was a pleasure to watch compared to much of the Hollywood fare that is served up and is certainly worth watching.However, I have to agree with the previous reviewer that the film was ruined for my by the ridiculous endings to both stories particularly after the Grandmother died in Wales. It was completely ludicrous and ruined what could have been a much better film.On the positive side listen out for Duffy (who appears in the film) singing a Spanish version of Hope There's Someone the beautiful Antony and The Johnsons track at the very end of the film.