‘Rita’ Review: A Real-Life Guatemalan Tragedy Is Exposed in a Devastating Dark Fantasy About Young Girls in an Abusive System
variety.comCarlos Aguilar A ghostly apparition clamored for justice in Jayro Bustamante’s blazing political horror “La Llorona,” about the genocide of Indigenous people in Guatemala.
In the genre, the Central American auteur found a piercing vehicle to discuss the sociopolitical afflictions of his homeland.
With “Rita,” Guatemala’s entry for the international feature Oscar (Bustamante’s third time representing the country), he returns to this mode for a gritty, dark fantasy based on an unspeakable 2017 tragedy involving young girls placed in a government-run shelter, which remains unpunished today.
To disclose further details about the case would spoil “Rita,” but it suffices to say no happy resolution came to pass. Thirteen-year-old Rita (Giuliana Santa Cruz) has landed at a facility for troubled girls — somewhere between a juvenile detention center and an orphanage — after escaping abhorrent abuse at home.
Read more on variety.com
