Featuring a visual aesthetic bursting with creativity and its own unique vision, Nelson Carlo de Los Santos Arias' Cocote is a murky tale, in which emotionally-driven penchant for revenge clashes with religious fanaticism, two forces equally driven by powers greater than the individual alone. Set in the Dominican Republic, Cocote follows the story of an Evangelical Christian man, who after learning of his father's murder, quickly discovers his new lifestyle violently clashing with his old, one in which religious rites and the familial desire for justice at any cost are paramount. Featuring an overall message that remains elusive from start-to-finish, Cocote plays in these murky waters, painting a picture of a harsh environment in the Dominican Republic where justice is a fleeting concept, held tightly by those who hold the power. Our central protagonist is a man who places all of his faith in his beliefs, unwilling to stray in anyway despite his family viewing him as a coward, and one who is unwilling to seek justice for the dogmatic murder of his father. The filmmakers of Cocote aren't overly assured in the themes this film explores, and while it may feel very subjective at the beginning about the absurdity of religious fanaticism, the film's conclusion blurs the filmmakers subjective bias considerably. Juxtaposing the rite rituals with those of Christianity, Cocote examines how both are rooted in the same place- vessels for humanity's desire to find meaning or purpose in life. His sisters derive their purpose in familial honor and justice, while our main protagonist derives his from his faith. These two forces conflict with each other when it comes to the moral implications involved in regards to justice vs. vengeance, yet Cocote exists in an unjust environment, where the powerful control the gears of justice. This is a place where self-determination must be seized at every opportunity, and our main protagonist eventually accepts that in a place with such corruption, justice won't always be morally clean. Throughout Cocote's running time we see how an individual's self-will or self-determination are in conflict with religion and familial ties, as we see an individual sacrifice his moral code and betray his religious beliefs for the sake of his family. Bringing a playful, mischievous aesthetic that implores compositions and designs that subvert narrative expectations throughout, Nelson Carlo de Los Santos Arias' Cocote is a strange brew of the conflict that exists between self-determination and religious fundamentalism, morality, justice, and vengeance.
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AuthorLove of all things cinema brought me here. Archives
June 2023
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