Polvo enamorado

A gallant effort that fails to carry to the international market. Made in Peru on what is obviously a limited budget, the only way this movie could have succeeded would have been with an extremely talented director. What this movie has is a director who has waaaay too many shaky and distracting images and uneven handling of the camera. Scenes are shot in the simplest manner possible with no originality. The story, of a young woman destined for the convent who agrees to marry a much older man on condition he does not seek sexual relations, then meets and falls in love with the new town priest, has echoes of The Crime of Padre Amaro, with none of the sweep of storytelling or professionalism in movie-making. The lead actress is unexceptional, as are most of the supporting cast, with the exception of the priest and the girl's stepson, who has secret lusts of his own for her. Unacceptable as a slice of realism, this movie simply fails to impress on any level. While the story itself does have an interesting premise, it is simply too dated to be of any real interest. A valiant effort on a shoestring budget but really not worth the time.