My Favourite Book and Film

Once upon a time, a little boy named Felipe, just as me, because it was me. Well, I was like 8 or 9 years old. And I had to go to my grandmother's sister's house. I was really bored. I wasn't allowed to talk, to watch TV, to go playing out in the street, to touch the cats. I couldn't do anything, I just had to be stuck in the chair, and in silence. It was overwhelmingly boring. Then, my aunt told me "you can go to the bedroom and take one book". I wasn't really into reading. But, when I realised it would be the only activity I could do that day, I said yes. I went to the bedroom, and there were lots of books, I thought "well, here there should be at least one book I could enjoy", and I gave a glimpse to the bookshelves, and I found a little book, with no more than 150 pages I remember, and with an image of a heart made up of bales. Its title was "Tengo Miedo Torero" and it was written by Pedro Lemebel.

I took that one, and I started reading. At first, I got shocked when I started reading, because I wasn't the most mature person, I wasn't 10 yet. And, taking consideration that I was raised in an extremely evangelic christian family, when my eyes fell into the word "maricón" I thought,"I shouldn't be reading this", but when I thought it, it was too late. Those words and that writing style, which was like doric-ish, captured me. An horrific story, death, despair, fear, and disgust were all told in such a way, that I couldn't help reading it until the end. And then, I stole the book, as a revenge for taking me there. 

It tells the story of a man, whose name is never told, people call him "La Loca" and everybody refers to La Loca as a woman. So, I will do it as well. La Loca lived in a low neighbourhood of Santiago after the coup in Chile, during the Pinochet's dictatorial regime. She knew a man, who started living with her (kind of...), and he was also a FMPR's member. She started feeling things she shouldn't feel for him, and she started realising things she hadn't before. 

There's another story I love, and by love I mean devotion. It's not a book, but a film. I've always thought how wonderful is human language, and how an idea, concept or object, can take millions and millions of names. How sounds change across the world. It just makes me tremble. And, one day I said, I have to learn french, I must learn french.

 And well, I started reading french grammar books, listening to french music, and, in this learning journey I came to a film named "Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain". I had no expectations, I just wanted to learn new vocabulary and understand at least the 60% of it. But, watching it, I felt every emotion the film wanted the audience to feel, I got lost in that movie. The narrator's voice at the back, the descriptions, the music, the acting, the script, everything was perfect, and beautiful. I was crying at the end, and it is not a sad film, but the emotions I felt were so strong and intense that tears started going out of my eyes by themselves. It tells the story of Amélie Poulain, a french girl who tries to bring goodness to this world. And, while watching the news on the TV, her life would take another direction. 

And I invite you all to read that book, I think it should be obligatory in schools, because it tells how reality was down in the chilean 80's. And, if you can, read other books of Pedro Lemebel. His writing is just captivating and magic. And please, watch this film, because it made me feel emotions i didn't felt since I was 6 years old. It's like a childish movie at first, but that childishness, turns into a wonderful story.