Jauja

Lisandro Alonso's new film Jauja stars Lord of the Rings actor Viggo Mortensen, and tells of a father's quest to find his missing daughter in the wilderness of the 19th century Patagonian desert.

Viggo Mortensen (the actor who played Aragorn in Lord of the Rings) stars in Lisandro Alonso's new film Jauja, set in a remote military outpost in Patagonia, in 1882. The film, set within the context of the genocidal campaign against the region's aborigional population, depicts the so-called 'Conquest of the Desert', and places the savagery of colonial conquest on an existential and personal plane. 

Jauja film plot

The film follows Captain Gunnar Dinesen, a visitor from Denmark who arrives with his fifteen year-old daughter to take an engineering job with the argentine army. His young daughter soon creates a stir among the female-starved men, eventually falling in love and eloping with on of the young soldiers.

Dinesen spends the rest of the film broaching enemy territory in search of the couple, on a solitary – often existential – quest very typical of Alonso's direction. The film depicts a world that is seemingly on the edge of existence, with a claustrophobia that manages to fully immerse its viewers in the film's subject – as Alonso's first foray into the world of period drama, Jauja has so far proved quite a success. 

Director Lisandro Alonso

Alonso has, in the past, been criticised for his slow-paced direction and minimalism, which ostracised many of his fans, but Jauja, which premiered at Cannes last year, was met with almost unanimous critical praise – with many surprised that the film didn't make it into the running for the Palme d'Or. 

What is Jauja?

The title Jauja refers to a mythological land of abundance and happiness – a legend that sparked numerous expeditions attempting to find the place, and with time, grew disproportionately. As Jauja touches on this sense of legend versus reality, Alonso's latest film reaches subtle and emotional depths. 

The film was scripted by everyman poet Fabian Casas and Viggo Mortensen also gained a co-producer credit for his contributions. 

Now the Lord of the Rings actor will be giving a Curzon Soho Q&A, to discuss making the film following a screening this Wednesday 1 April. Tickets for this high profile will no doubt sell quickly, so we recommend booking via Curzon soon.