JAGUAR AND MAN LIE TOGETHER IN ARDOR
The lumber harvest from jungles has seriously damaged the world ecosystem while disrupting lives of those who have lived for generations amid pristine conditions, foraging for themselves while respecting the environment. One such place, along the Río Parana in Argentina, is featured in the Argentine-Brazilian film El Ardor, though no titles at the beginning inform filmviewers of that context. Instead, Director Pablo Fendrik focuses on efforts of lumber company agents to bully landowners into relinquishing ownership of their property. The film begins with one such extortion, the murder of the landowner, and the kidnapping of Vania, the landowner’s daughter (played by Alice Braga), while the hero of the film, Kaí (Gael García Bernal), hides and survives. Somehow Kaí later liberates Vania and later recaptures the signed deed transfer. They return to Vania’s house to stand their ground along with a third person who has defected from the gun-slinging mercenaries. The three then set a trap for the return of the mercenaries despite knowing that other bullies will be along later. The most fascinating subplot involves the behavior of the jungle jaguar, who respects Kaí and Vania, sensing that they are trying to protect the only habitat in which the animal can survive. Kaí, in other words, plays the role of an avenging Tarzan. MH