Camino (2008)

That was an excellent one.

It is a performances centric movie

I'll tell you why so serious

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

I couldn't belive the review with 1-3 stars. Either They have never watched a good movie before nor really conservative about church and religion. No one who is watching this movie with a pure heart in that innocent girl's eyes can not criticize it that harsh. And i think the scenario and acting also great. I don't like drama but this is my favourite movie and i recommend it to everyone.

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.

This is a very intense movie, with a wonderful cast, perfectly directed. I can understand that some people may object to the film, in which it is not telling the story the way they want to hear it or have come to believe it, but that is beyond the point of the film: it is simply telling a story, in a beautiful, tender and positive way. And we must not forget, it is BASED on a true story, but just that, based, inspired on it. What we are presented here is a version, a very beautiful one, of a similar story. I think unfortunately any movie about religion, specially when disagreeing with the faith shown in it, is meant to cause trouble within the people that want to worship in that way. That, fortunately, does not dictate the stories that can be told on a film, and this one is obviously a fantastic one. I myself am absolutely non religious, but I enjoyed the story for being so moving, and loved to see the Opus Dei side of it as I consider it interesting, as I would consider interesting a movie or documentary on a child believed to be the re-encarnation of the Buddha. But be sure, this is no Da Vinci Code here, it is not intended to make a caricature of Opus Dei, it is simply done from another point of view which adds to the interest of the movie: after all a movie about a girl saint done from the Opus Dei (or any other religion) point of view would be not only terribly propagandistic, but also much more boring.