REVIEW: ‘Still Burn’ documents legacy of Bolivia’s Alfredo Ovando Candia
Photo: Still Burn is a new documentary that looks at the complicated history of Alfredo Ovando Candía, the filmmaker’s grandfather. Photo courtesy of Cinema Tropical / Provided with permission.
Still Burn (Algo Quema), directed by Mauricio Alfredo Ovando, is an intimate portrait of the former president of Bolivia, the controversial dictator Alfredo Ovando Candía, who ruled over the country for a number of crucial years in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The documentary, which is now available through Cinema Tropical’s VOD collection, investigates the two sides of the man: the family person who doted on his wife, children and grandchildren, and the militaristic president who was in power during a time of massacres and rebel uprisings.
Unfortunately the film can never marry these two portraits of the man into one coherent thesis. Candía, in many ways, remains as much an enigma after these 77 minutes as he did before watching this deeply personal movie.
The director is the grandson of Candía, and to his credit he doesn’t pull away the camera when the questions become difficult and emotional. He is after the many memories of his country during the 1960s and what his grandfather might have caused, and this fact-finding mission turns up many different, and sometimes conflicting, images and stories.
Perhaps most infamously, Candía was a leader when Che Guevara was killed in the country in 1967, and his first ascent to the top position came after a military coup against then-President Victor Paz Estenssoro. Much of this history is glossed over rather quickly, so it would benefit the audience member to read up on some of the political and militaristic history before watching Still Burn.
Underneath this archival footage and the family movies that the director is able to utilize are many important themes, such as violence, trust, privilege, freedom, family and politics. Perhaps it’s not surprising that Candía’s wife defends his actions and honor, while others are less forgiving.
What Still Burn proves to be is an exercise in remembrance (not commemoration), a modern-day documentary that uses the power of hindsight to consider, evaluate and piece together a complicated history that still burns in the heart of the filmmaker and the hearts of Bolivians.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Still Burn (Algo Quema) (2018). Directed by Mauricio Alfredo Ovando. In Spanish with English subtitles. Running time: 77 minutes. Rating: 
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