MOVIES AT LA PLAZA: A YARD OF JACKALS—The Many Facets of Horror

Movie Review by Sergio Martínez

Military dictatorships in Latin America, as other political events marked by the arbitrary detention and eventual murder of opponents—the Nazi era, for example—can serve as a rich source for stories in which horror—the real kind, caused by factors beyond one’s control—intertwines with the horror that sometimes emerges from one’s own imagination. This is the case with the experience lived by Raúl (Néstor Cantillana) in this film written and directed by Diego Figueroa. Although the film is Chilean and is certainly inspired by the experience of Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship, the director does not set the plot in his own country but rather presents it as an event that could have occurred under any of the military dictatorships that struck some Latin American countries in the 1970s.

However, there are some somewhat implausible aspects to the plot: the fact that Raúl seems to be unaware of the climate of repression that prevailed at the time, and that the dictatorship’s police had a secret headquarters in a house adjacent to Raúl’s. (As far as we know, both in Chile and Argentina, there were secret facilities, many of them in the middle of cities, but it is not very likely that any would have been so close to another house.) However, both aspects are essential to the story's development, so we can overlook them.

Raúl is a mysterious and strange character. His job involves designing and building scale models of buildings and other structures, which he creates on commission for the military; at the same time, he makes figurines to complement some of his miniatures. He lives with his ailing mother and communicates very little, which is why he could be described as autistic. Raúl’s limited social circle consists solely of his friendship with Laura (Blanca Lewin), who, along with her sister, runs a clothing store in the neighbourhood.

The presence of the strange neighbours and the screams Raúl hears at night from the house next door will lead him to unravel the mystery, a task in which his friend Laura will assist him. This will cause Raúl to become increasingly entangled in a web of events that will affect him very closely. He records all these events in his diary, a detail that will prove significant as well.

It is precisely when Raúl and Laura become entangled in the events unfolding in the neighbouring house that the film’s narrative takes on what might be its most distinctive feature: the interplay between reality and hallucination, between real terror and that produced by the characters’ imaginations. An interplay of levels of reality that is only revealed in the final scenes, which, in any case, leaves the viewer with some doubt as to what action the other major character—identified only as “Chacal” (Juan Cano), who appears first in the film—will take.

A Yard of Jackals is an interesting film, offering a different perspective on those times of repression. There are, however, some loose ends in the story’s development: Raúl has a gunshot wound in his leg, and it remains unclear under what circumstances it was inflicted; at another point, now more deeply involved in the events surrounding the mysterious neighbouring house, he attempts a clever maneuver to help a likely victim of the repression, without any further follow-up, though the outcome is evidently revealed in the subsequent scenes.

All in all, it is a film we recommend for its effective blend of the thriller genre with the drama's political backdrop. Both Cantillana and Lewin deliver solid, believable performances.

Running time: 108 min.