Canoa: A Shameful Memory 05/17 Blu-ray (Rental)

Canoa: A Shameful Memory (Criterion) is a powerful Mexican docudrama—historic, unsettling, and essential for world cinema collectors. Review One of Mexico’s best-regarded works of political cinema, Canoa: A Shameful Memory reimagines a real-life incident that had occurred just eight years before its release, when a group of urban university employees on a hiking trip were viciously attacked by residents of the village of San Miguel de Canoa, who had been manipulated by a corrupt priest into believing the travelers were communist revolutionaries. Intercutting footage from a fictional documentary about the village with gruesome scenes of the crime itself, director Felipe Cazals produced a daring commentary on the climate of violence and repression in Mexico during that era, including the military’s infamous massacre of demonstrating students in Tlatelolco, Mexico City. With its gritty newsreel style, Canoa is a visceral expression of horror as well as an important historical document. DIRECTOR-APPROVED BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES -New, restored 4K digital transfer, supervised by director Felipe Cazals, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack -New introduction by filmmaker Guillermo del Toro -New conversation between filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón and Cazals -Trailer -New English subtitle translation -PLUS: An essay by critic Fernanda Solórzano