DIR. Dominga Sotomayor
YEAR. 2018
COUNTRY. Chile
RUN-TIME. 110 MINS
RATING. 15
£6.00 (£4.50 conc.)
Doors 7.30PM
Film 8.00PM
Set in Chile in the summer of 1990, Too Late to Die Young is a beguiling coming-of-age drama, partly inspired by the director’s own experiences growing up in the alternative ecological community of Peñalolén. As the country comes to terms with the end of Pinochet’s dictatorship, a group of adolescents living on a rural commune is the foothills of the Andes attempt to make sense of their own burgeoning desires and tangled relationships. Sixteen-year old Sofia, the daughter of a famous singer, who is largely absent from her life, becomes intoxicated with the motorbike-riding Ignacio—much to the dismay of her friend, Lucas. Meanwhile, ten-year old Clara is more concerned with the whereabouts of her beloved dog. Featuring a standout performance from newcomer, Demian Hernández, as Sofia, this is a subtly observed and beautifully shot evocation of a time brimming with hope and trepidation, with Inti Briones’ cinematography capturing perfectly the sun-scorched hues of an endless teenage summer.
Little White Lies: ★★★★ “An intimate, human-focused film with broad allegorical potential”
Financial Times: ★★★★ “Too Late to Die Young, a bewitching film from Chile’s Dominga Sotomayor Castillo”
Evening Standard: ★★★★
The Skinny: ★★★★ “the film remains incredibly sensitive to the weight of political upheaval happening outside the frame”
RTE: ★★★★ “Nervy restlessness and the anticipation of doomed innocence shadows the brilliant Too Late to Die Young”
Filmuforia: ★★★★ “[Dominga Sotomayor] has that rare gift of lightness of touch, letting her drama take shape naturally marking her out as a real talent to watch out for”
The Upcoming: ★★★★ “Dominga Sotomayor infuses scenes with great visual wit and elegance”
“Too Late to Die Young is Castillo’s remarkable endeavour to relive memories, sensations and lived moments”
“Castillo’s talent for spiritually attuned atmospherics could be her USP among Chile’s current crop of directors”