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Bad Hair

Country: Venezuela, Language: Spanish, 93 mins

Original Title

Pelo Malo
  • Director: Mariana Rondón
  • Writer: Mariana Rondón
  • Producer: Gunter Hanfgarn; José Ibáñez

CGiii Comment

The rather comical title masks the true identity of this film.

This is not a pleasant tale...of a boy who hates his curly hair.

This is a dark and disturbing glance into precarious parenting and the subjective perspectives of fixation.

Samantha Castillo is outstanding [and loathsome] as the mother...suffering from homosexual panic...her coldness towards her son is savage - blisteringly contrasted by the love she bestows on the baby.

The savagery continues...the grandmother, a devoutly devious woman with highly suspect morals...her compliance with gender variance is a worry. Her motives are as wholesome as a buggering priest.

But...it's Samuel Lange Zambrano who shines...an extraordinary performance from one so young. Downtrodden and denied at every turn...his survival instinct is razor sharp. His charm is succinct.

The poverty is crippling. The opinions are stifling. The future looks bleak.

An uncomfortable and extraordinary film.


Trailer...

The(ir) Blurb...

A nine-year-old boy's preening obsession with straightening his hair elicits a tidal wave of homophobic panic in his hard-working mother.

Cast & Characters

Beto Benites as El Jefe;
Samantha Castillo as Marta;
Samuel Lange Zambrano as Junior;
Nelly Ramos as Carmen;
Maria Emilia Sulbaran as La nina