Indignant retired general Enrique finally faces trial for the genocidal massacre of thousands of Mayans decades ago. As a horde of angry protestors threatens to invade their opulent home, the women of the house—his haughty wife, conflicted daughter, and precocious granddaughter—weigh their responsibility to shield the erratic, senile Enrique against the devastating truths being publicly revealed and the increasing sense that a wrathful supernatural force is targeting them for his crimes. Meanwhile, much of the family’s domestic staff flees, leaving only loyal housekeeper Valeriana until a mysterious young Indigenous maid arrives.
A tale of horror and magical realism, the film reimagines the iconic Latin American fable as an urgent metaphor of Guatemala’s recent history and tears open the country’s unhealed political wounds to grieve a seldom discussed crime against humanity. LA LLORONA marks Bustamante’s third feature and demonstrates his continued efforts to highlight social inequality in his native Guatemala following his previous titles 'Temblores' (2019) and 'Ixcanul' (2016).
**Venice Film Festival Winner - Best Film (Venice Days)**
**Toronto International Film Festival - Official Selection**
**Sundance Film Festival - Official Selection**
**BFI London Film Festival - Official Selection**
"Walks between fact and myth to engender a shrewdly frightening piece of political horror... If films are a force for change, there’s hardly a better case study than what Bustamante and company are sowing by digging into topics deemed controversial."
- Carlos Aguilar, The Wrap
"Astonishing... A trauma-induced reverberation of patriarchal war and violence."
- Guy Lodge, Variety
"Studios take note: the best way to make a Latino horror film is to trust the people who actually know and live in that culture."
- Rafael Motamayor, Remezcla
“In the world LA LLORONA creates, your sins will not only haunt until you make amends–it will haunt those who’ve protected you from those repercussions. Underscored with a foreboding sense of disquiet akin to last year’s 'Atlantics', the viewing experience is as satisfying as it is provocative.”
- Dan Mecca, The Film Stage