Machuca(2004)
dir. Andrés Wood
Two boys, one class line, the 1973 coup.
Where to watch: Subscription: Kino Film Collection ($5.99/mo); free with library card on Kanopy; Fandor listed free with ads; no digital rent or buy listed (JustWatch US, checked 2026-08-15, re-check). Verify.Letterboxd ↗
Santiago, 1973. At an elite school, a priest brings in a few poor kids on scholarship, and Gonzalo, a rich boy, befriends Pedro Machuca, who lives in a shantytown. They trade comics, condensed milk and secrets while the country around them tips towards a coup. Told from the boys' eye level, it is about what two kids can see before the adults decide it for them.
Why it’s here
It's a film about two boys on either side of a class line, watching a coup happen. What's punk is how a friendship gets crushed by history, with no villain speech to explain it. What's pedagogical is the kid's-eye view, which lets the politics arrive the way kids actually meet it. Pairs with The House of the Spirits, The Battle of Chile (suggested 11-03) and Nostalgia for the Light. Note: R-rated; military violence and a brief scene of young teens’ sexual curiosity; older teens and adults. Spanish with subtitles.
Where This Film Lives
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