VIFF 2014: Yakona gets under the surface

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      Yakona (USA)

      This lyrical take on Texas’s San Marcos River is notable mostly for how it puts you under the water, eye to eye with turtles, beneath swaying fronds looking up to the sky. It juxtaposes those images with shots of industrialization of the river and, with less success, re-enactments that show its importance to indigenous cultures and their mythology. Pretty specific geographically, but hypnotic on its own terms, an environmental document without words.

      Vancity, September  26 (7 p.m.); International Village, September 29 (11:30 a.m.); Cinematheque, October 9 (9:15 p.m.) 

      Follow Janet Smith on Twitter at @janetsmitharts.

      Comments

      1 Comments

      Larry Graham

      Sep 20, 2014 at 11:00am

      To respect this movie, you need to know the history of our state and our culture. The symbolic destruction of the underwater theatre hit me hard, I remember visiting it as a child. The battle scenes, whether between Rangers and Indians or between the turtle and waterfowl, remind us of the struggle the river faces everyday. It is a totally mesmerizing experience.
      I'm a Texan by birth who is happily married to a BC girl.