Burning the Bridges (Quemar las naves) contains themes, issues, and problems that at one time would have shocked and appalled. However we've come a long way in the world of the movies and subjects such as incest and homoeroticism don't strengthen a movie by simple reason of their inclusion.
The film's sensitive approach, although coming off as caring about some of its more universal subject matter, makes its treatment of these issues rather tame in comparison to other racier pictures. It has strong performances which are worth seeking out but rarely is it as emotionally provocative as it wants and needs to be.
Nineteen-year-old Helena is devoted to the care of her dying mother, while her bother Sebastian is mainly at school. But after their mother dies, Sebastian becomes attached to the new boy at his Catholic school and Helena struggles to keep herself and Sebastian together.
It's quite peculiar that a film with such risky themes chooses to almost ignore them completely. We get such things as questioned sexual orientation or possible incest dangled in front of us but the film seems reluctant to explore them in any great detail. Although only just over 100 minutes long, it seems far longer as we meander through the plot with only parts here and there to hold interest.
It's an undoubtedly beautiful picture, shot in a soft and sensitive kind of way. It's therefore a film easy on the eyes, as opposed to, for example, the films of Pedro Almodovar, which are vibrant and startlingly colourful. This soft look reflects the sensitive treatment of the main story that deals with loss and trying to move on.
The performances are what effectively save the picture; they are as believable and realistic as one could hope for, particularly the performance of Irene Azeula as Helena, who holds back from falling into the melodrama trap, making for believable viewing instead of the eye-rolling that could have occurred. Her character is responsible, tough yet caring, and she stands in direct contrast to her brother Sebastian, played well by Angel Onesimo Nevarez. He is naive, hopeful, almost desperate in his actions, and unable to control his emotions as well as his sister does. At least when the film sags, as it often does, we have some rounded, three-dimensional characters to latch onto.
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