''The Promised Land'' ( es, La tierra prometida) is a 1972 Chilean

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

written and directed by

Miguel Littín Miguel Ernesto Littin Cucumides (born 9 August 1942) is a Chilean film director, screenwriter, film producer and novelist. He was born to a Palestinian father, Hernán Littin and a Greek mother, Cristina Cucumides. Career Miguel Littin dir ...

. It was entered into the

8th Moscow International Film Festival The 8th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 10 to 23 July 1973. The Golden Prizes were awarded to the Soviet film '' That Sweet Word: Liberty!'' directed by Vytautas Žalakevičius and the Bulgarian film '' Affection'' directed by L ...

. The film was not officially released until 1991 due to the military coup in 1973, which prevented the production from being completed in Chile. It was finished by Littín in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

with the collaboration of the Cuban Institute of Art and Cinematographic Industry. The performances of Nelson Villagra and Marcelo Gaete as the lead actors stand out. The music includes the participation of

Inti Illimani Inti-Illimani (; from Quechuan ''Inti'' and Aymara ''Illimani)'' are an instrumental and vocal Latin American folk music ensemble from Chile. The band was formed in 1967 by a group of university students and it acquired widespread popularity in C ...

and Ángel Parra, whose direction was supervised by

Luis Advis Luis Advis Vitaglich (10 February 1935 – 9 September 2004)http://www.lanacion.cl/p4_lanacion/site ''Falleció Luis Advis, compositor de la "Cantata Santa María de Iquique"'' was a Chilean professor of philosophy, and a noted composer of traditi ...

Plot

In the late 1920s, the economic crisis in Chile affected thousands of peasants, as well as displaced nitrate workers from closed northern offices. One such displaced person, El Traje Cruzado, meets José Durán, and they discuss revolution and the right of peasants to occupy state lands. They arrive in

Palmilla Palmilla is a Chilean city and commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region. Demographics According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, the commune of Palmilla spans an area of and has 11,200 inhabitants (5,825 men and ...

and establish a town, sharing harvests and profits. When news of the

Socialist Republic of Chile The Socialist Republic of Chile ( es, República Socialista de Chile) was a short-lived (4 June 1932 – 13 September 1932) political entity in Chile, that was proclaimed by the Government Junta that took over that year. Background In July, 1 ...

reaches them, the peasants arm themselves and occupy the mayor's office in El Huique. However, the socialist revolution fails, and they are evicted amid shots from uniformed officers. The peasants resist, but one by one, they fall, and José is executed. The movie is narrated by a witness and includes elements of popular religiosity. The Virgin Mary is mentioned as being with the peasants and helping them, but her face changes when they are evicted from the town hall, indicating that she has abandoned them. In the final scene, a semi-nude and bloodied Virgin accompanies José in his last moments.

Cast

Nelson Villagra Nelson Villagra (born 9 August 1937) is a Chilean actor, writer and director of stage and screen. He is recognised as one of the most masterful actors in Chilean cinema and is widely known in Chile for his exceptional portrayal of a mentally ...

Marcelo Gaete Marcelo is a given name, the Spanish and Portuguese form of Marcellus. The Italian version of the name is Marcello, differing in having an additional "l". Marcelo may refer to: * Marcelo Costa de Andrade (born 1967), Brazilian serial killer, rapi ...

* Rafael Benavente *

Shenda Román Shenda Román (born 4 August 1928) is a Chilean actress best known for playing leading roles opposite Nelson Villagra in the "New Chilean Cinema" (1968-1973) of directors Raúl Ruiz and Miguel Littín. Selected filmography * ''Three Sad Tige ...

Pedro Manuel Álvarez Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for '' Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter. The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meaning ...

* Carmen Bueno *

Mireya Kulczewsky Alejandrina Mireya Luis Hernández, often referred to as Mireya (born August 25, 1967 in Camagüey) is a retired Cuban volleyball player. Life At the age of 10 she started playing volleyball. At 16, Mireya joined the Cuban national team for th ...

(as Mireya Kulchesky) *

Aníbal Reyna Aníbal is the Spanish and Portuguese masculine given name equivalent of Hannibal (q.v.), itself a latinization of the Greek name Hanníbas (Ἀννίβας), derived from “ḥnbʿl” in the Carthaginian language (Carthaginian Punic script, � ...

References

External links

* 1973 drama films 1973 films Chilean drama films Films directed by Miguel Littín 1970s Spanish-language films {{Chile-film-stub