The Burning Plain
Encyclopedia
The Burning Plain is a 2008 drama film
directed and written by Guillermo Arriaga
, the screenwriter of Amores perros
(2000), 21 Grams
(2003), and Babel (2006). The film stars Charlize Theron
, Jennifer Lawrence
, Kim Basinger
and Joaquim de Almeida
. In Arriaga's directorial debut, he films a story that has multipart story strands woven together like in his previous screenplays. Filming of The Burning Plain began in New Mexico
in November 2007, and the film was released in late 2008 in various festivals, before general releases in 2009.
The story starts off some time in the mid-90's in a small New Mexico town near the border of Mexico, where we are introduced to Gina (Kim Basinger
), a wife and mother to four children. Gina carries out an affair with a local man named Nick Martinez (Joaquim de Almeida
), who also has a family of his own, but unbeknownst to the two, Gina's teenage daughter Mariana (Jennifer Lawrence
) finds out about their love affair. Mariana follows her mother to Nick's trailer. Knowing the two are inside and in an effort to make them end their affair, she disassembles the gas pipe leading into the trailer, and sets it on fire. The flames eventually reach a gas tank that causes a fiery explosion, consuming the entire trailer and claiming both Nick and Gina's lives, although she had no intention of killing either of them. After their funeral, Mariana and Nick's own teenage son, Santiago (JD Pardo), slowly begin to develop a relationship of their own. Mariana soon becomes aware that she is pregnant with Santiago's daughter. The two flee to Mexico amid disapproval from their families and decide to have the baby there, but after she has delivered their daughter, Mariana abandons her family and assumes the new name of Sylvia.
Over a decade later, Sylvia (now played by Charlize Theron
) works at a high-end Portland restaurant. Despite her success, she resorts to promiscuity
and has persistent thoughts of suicide. After an encounter with Carlos (José María Yazpik), one of Santiago's friends, he informs her that Santiago was involved in a serious airplane accident in Mexico while crop dusting, and that he has been raising their daughter, named Maria (Tessa Ia), there for all these years. Carlos urges Sylvia to pay him a visit. Sylvia struggles with her conscience as to whether or not she should revisit her past, but ultimately realizes her mistakes and regrets abandoning her family. With help from her friend Laura (Robin Tunney
), Sylvia is able to reunite with her daughter once again, whom Carlos has brought along to Portland. They fly over to Mexico, where Sylvia apologizes to Maria for the years she's been absent in her life. After a night of rest, they arrive at the hospital to see Santiago, who is still in a coma from the accident. Sylvia confesses her past sins by his bedside, unsure if he will ever wake up again. The doctor reassures them that he will pull through, and the story concludes with the signs of hope for the family.
in his directorial debut after writing the screenplays for director Alejandro González Iñárritu
's films Amores perros
(2000), 21 Grams
(2003), and Babel (2006). Arriaga said that he wanted to write a script for himself to direct after 11 years of scriptwriting. The writer-director described the premise, "There are very intense love stories here that take place in different places and times, with characters trying to find the healing powers of love, forgiveness and redemption." Arriaga wrote the story of The Burning Plain to weave together multipart story strands. The film was financed by 2929 Productions, and Constantini Films and The Weinstein Company
purchased the rights to distribute The Burning Plain in Latin America. The film will have a budget of under $20 million. The Burning Plain began filming in New Mexico
on November 5, 2007. Other filming took place in Portland
and Depoe Bay
in Oregon
.
The film was screened at the 2008 Savannah Film Festival (October 25-November 1).
It is an entrant of the international competition of 65th Venice International Film Festival
.
The Burning Plain was released September 18, 2009.
reports 34% positive of 73 reviews assessed. Metacritic
assigns a "metascore" of 45 (out of 100) based on 18 reviews. Of the most positive reviews, David Gritten writing for The Daily Telegraph
decided that it "has all the right credentials: it is serious-minded and dramatic, with universal themes and a clutch of fine acting performances." Wendy Ide, writing for The Times
that it is an "elegantly structured tale of lives laced together with tragedy and guilt." Ide also praised Theron's performance and concluded that it is a "quality production." According to Time Out, "Arriaga has delivered a compelling and entertaining debut that stays true to his earlier interests."
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed and written by Guillermo Arriaga
Guillermo Arriaga
Guillermo Arriaga Jordán is a Mexican author, screenwriter, director and producer. Self-defined as “a hunter who works as a writer,” he authored Amores Perros, received a BAFTA Best Screenplay nomination for 21 Grams, and received the 2005 Cannes Best Screenplay Award for The Three Burials of...
, the screenwriter of Amores perros
Amores perros
Amores perros is a 2000 neorealist Mexican film, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu. Amores Perros is the first movie in Iñárritu's trilogy of death, and was followed by 21 Grams and Babel. It is a triptych; an anthology film, sometimes referred to as the "Mexican Pulp Fiction," containing...
(2000), 21 Grams
21 Grams
21 Grams is a 2003 American drama film directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu and written by Guillermo Arriaga. It stars Sean Penn, Naomi Watts, Danny Huston, and Benicio del Toro....
(2003), and Babel (2006). The film stars Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron is a South African actress, film producer and former fashion model.She rose to fame in the late 1990s following her roles in 2 Days in the Valley, Mighty Joe Young, The Devil's Advocate and The Cider House Rules...
, Jennifer Lawrence
Jennifer Lawrence
Jennifer Shrader Lawrence is an American film and television actress. She has had lead roles in TBS's The Bill Engvall Show and in the independent films The Burning Plain and Winter's Bone, for which she received critical acclaim and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress...
, Kim Basinger
Kim Basinger
Kimila Ann "Kim" Basinger is an American actress and former fashion model.She is known for her portrayals of Domino Petachi, the Bond girl in Never Say Never Again , and Vicki Vale, the female lead in Batman . Basinger received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture...
and Joaquim de Almeida
Joaquim de Almeida
Joaquim António Portugal Baptista de Almeida is a Portuguese-born American actor. He began his acting doing some theater. During the 1980s, he started his film career appearing on the 1982 action film The Soldier, and later achieved recognition for playing Andrea Bonanno in the 1987 Italian film...
. In Arriaga's directorial debut, he films a story that has multipart story strands woven together like in his previous screenplays. Filming of The Burning Plain began in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
in November 2007, and the film was released in late 2008 in various festivals, before general releases in 2009.
Plot
Typical of Arriaga's works, this film is told in a non-linear narrative, where events are revealed out of sequence. The following plot summary is in chronological order, and thus does not reflect the exact sequence of the events as seen on screen.The story starts off some time in the mid-90's in a small New Mexico town near the border of Mexico, where we are introduced to Gina (Kim Basinger
Kim Basinger
Kimila Ann "Kim" Basinger is an American actress and former fashion model.She is known for her portrayals of Domino Petachi, the Bond girl in Never Say Never Again , and Vicki Vale, the female lead in Batman . Basinger received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture...
), a wife and mother to four children. Gina carries out an affair with a local man named Nick Martinez (Joaquim de Almeida
Joaquim de Almeida
Joaquim António Portugal Baptista de Almeida is a Portuguese-born American actor. He began his acting doing some theater. During the 1980s, he started his film career appearing on the 1982 action film The Soldier, and later achieved recognition for playing Andrea Bonanno in the 1987 Italian film...
), who also has a family of his own, but unbeknownst to the two, Gina's teenage daughter Mariana (Jennifer Lawrence
Jennifer Lawrence
Jennifer Shrader Lawrence is an American film and television actress. She has had lead roles in TBS's The Bill Engvall Show and in the independent films The Burning Plain and Winter's Bone, for which she received critical acclaim and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress...
) finds out about their love affair. Mariana follows her mother to Nick's trailer. Knowing the two are inside and in an effort to make them end their affair, she disassembles the gas pipe leading into the trailer, and sets it on fire. The flames eventually reach a gas tank that causes a fiery explosion, consuming the entire trailer and claiming both Nick and Gina's lives, although she had no intention of killing either of them. After their funeral, Mariana and Nick's own teenage son, Santiago (JD Pardo), slowly begin to develop a relationship of their own. Mariana soon becomes aware that she is pregnant with Santiago's daughter. The two flee to Mexico amid disapproval from their families and decide to have the baby there, but after she has delivered their daughter, Mariana abandons her family and assumes the new name of Sylvia.
Over a decade later, Sylvia (now played by Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron is a South African actress, film producer and former fashion model.She rose to fame in the late 1990s following her roles in 2 Days in the Valley, Mighty Joe Young, The Devil's Advocate and The Cider House Rules...
) works at a high-end Portland restaurant. Despite her success, she resorts to promiscuity
Promiscuity
In humans, promiscuity refers to less discriminating casual sex with many sexual partners. The term carries a moral or religious judgement and is viewed in the context of the mainstream social ideal for sexual activity to take place within exclusive committed relationships...
and has persistent thoughts of suicide. After an encounter with Carlos (José María Yazpik), one of Santiago's friends, he informs her that Santiago was involved in a serious airplane accident in Mexico while crop dusting, and that he has been raising their daughter, named Maria (Tessa Ia), there for all these years. Carlos urges Sylvia to pay him a visit. Sylvia struggles with her conscience as to whether or not she should revisit her past, but ultimately realizes her mistakes and regrets abandoning her family. With help from her friend Laura (Robin Tunney
Robin Tunney
Robin Jessica Tunney is an American actress. She is best known for her lead roles in the movie The Craft and the television series Prison Break and The Mentalist.-Early life:...
), Sylvia is able to reunite with her daughter once again, whom Carlos has brought along to Portland. They fly over to Mexico, where Sylvia apologizes to Maria for the years she's been absent in her life. After a night of rest, they arrive at the hospital to see Santiago, who is still in a coma from the accident. Sylvia confesses her past sins by his bedside, unsure if he will ever wake up again. The doctor reassures them that he will pull through, and the story concludes with the signs of hope for the family.
Cast
- Charlize TheronCharlize TheronCharlize Theron is a South African actress, film producer and former fashion model.She rose to fame in the late 1990s following her roles in 2 Days in the Valley, Mighty Joe Young, The Devil's Advocate and The Cider House Rules...
as Sylvia - Kim BasingerKim BasingerKimila Ann "Kim" Basinger is an American actress and former fashion model.She is known for her portrayals of Domino Petachi, the Bond girl in Never Say Never Again , and Vicki Vale, the female lead in Batman . Basinger received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture...
as Gina - Jennifer LawrenceJennifer LawrenceJennifer Shrader Lawrence is an American film and television actress. She has had lead roles in TBS's The Bill Engvall Show and in the independent films The Burning Plain and Winter's Bone, for which she received critical acclaim and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress...
as Mariana - Joaquim de AlmeidaJoaquim de AlmeidaJoaquim António Portugal Baptista de Almeida is a Portuguese-born American actor. He began his acting doing some theater. During the 1980s, he started his film career appearing on the 1982 action film The Soldier, and later achieved recognition for playing Andrea Bonanno in the 1987 Italian film...
as Nick Martinez - John Corbett as John
- Robin TunneyRobin TunneyRobin Jessica Tunney is an American actress. She is best known for her lead roles in the movie The Craft and the television series Prison Break and The Mentalist.-Early life:...
as Laura - Brett CullenBrett CullenPeter Brett Cullen is an American actor who has appeared in numerous motion pictures and television programs. Early in 2007, he was cast as the role of an estranged father to one of the American football players, Tim Riggins , in the NBC drama series Friday Night Lights.Cullen was born in Houston,...
as Robert - Danny PinoDanny PinoDaniel G. "Danny" Pino is an Cuban American actor. 2002 saw him appear in London's West End in the theatre play called Up for Grabs with Madonna. In May 2003, Pino played Desi Arnaz in a CBS special on the life of Lucille Ball, Lucy: The Lucille Ball Story. Pino was born in Miami, Florida...
as Santiago Martinez - José María Yazpik as Carlos
- J.D. PardoJ.D. PardoJuan Diego "J.D." Pardo is an American actor born in Panorama City, California, best known for his role as Edward Araujo, Jr./Gwen Amber Rose Araujo in the Lifetime Network Movie called A Girl Like Me: The Gwen Araujo Story....
as Young Santiago - Tessa Ia as Maria Martinez
- Rachel TicotinRachel TicotinRachel Ticotin is an American film and television actress.-Early life:Ticotin was born in Bronx, New York, the daughter of Iris Torres, a Puerto Rican educator, and Abe Ticotin, a Russian Jewish used car salesman. Her brother, Sahaj, is a musician and the lead singer for his rock group, Ra...
as Ana - Diego J. Torres as Cristobal Martinez
- Rafael Hernández as Doctor Armendariz
Production
The Burning Plain is written and directed by Guillermo ArriagaGuillermo Arriaga
Guillermo Arriaga Jordán is a Mexican author, screenwriter, director and producer. Self-defined as “a hunter who works as a writer,” he authored Amores Perros, received a BAFTA Best Screenplay nomination for 21 Grams, and received the 2005 Cannes Best Screenplay Award for The Three Burials of...
in his directorial debut after writing the screenplays for director Alejandro González Iñárritu
Alejandro González Iñárritu
Alejandro González Iñárritu is a Mexican film director.González Iñárritu is the first Mexican director to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and by the DGA of America for Best Director. He is also the first and only Mexican born director to have won the Prix de la mise en scene...
's films Amores perros
Amores perros
Amores perros is a 2000 neorealist Mexican film, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu. Amores Perros is the first movie in Iñárritu's trilogy of death, and was followed by 21 Grams and Babel. It is a triptych; an anthology film, sometimes referred to as the "Mexican Pulp Fiction," containing...
(2000), 21 Grams
21 Grams
21 Grams is a 2003 American drama film directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu and written by Guillermo Arriaga. It stars Sean Penn, Naomi Watts, Danny Huston, and Benicio del Toro....
(2003), and Babel (2006). Arriaga said that he wanted to write a script for himself to direct after 11 years of scriptwriting. The writer-director described the premise, "There are very intense love stories here that take place in different places and times, with characters trying to find the healing powers of love, forgiveness and redemption." Arriaga wrote the story of The Burning Plain to weave together multipart story strands. The film was financed by 2929 Productions, and Constantini Films and The Weinstein Company
The Weinstein Company
The Weinstein Company is an American film studio founded by Bob and Harvey Weinstein in 2005 after the brothers left the then-Disney-owned Miramax Films, which they had co-founded in 1979...
purchased the rights to distribute The Burning Plain in Latin America. The film will have a budget of under $20 million. The Burning Plain began filming in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
on November 5, 2007. Other filming took place in Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
and Depoe Bay
Depoe Bay, Oregon
Depoe Bay is a city in Lincoln County, Oregon, United States, located on U.S. Route 101 next to the Pacific Ocean. The population was 1,174 at the 2000 census, with an unofficial estimated population of 1,355 in 2007...
in Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
.
Release
It was screened at the September 2008 TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival).The film was screened at the 2008 Savannah Film Festival (October 25-November 1).
It is an entrant of the international competition of 65th Venice International Film Festival
65th Venice International Film Festival
The 65th Venice International Film Festival, held in Venice, Italy, was opened on August 27, 2008 by Burn After Reading, and closed on September 6, 2008....
.
The Burning Plain was released September 18, 2009.
Critical reception
The Burning Plain has received generally poor reviews from critics. Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reports 34% positive of 73 reviews assessed. Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
assigns a "metascore" of 45 (out of 100) based on 18 reviews. Of the most positive reviews, David Gritten writing for The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
decided that it "has all the right credentials: it is serious-minded and dramatic, with universal themes and a clutch of fine acting performances." Wendy Ide, writing for The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
that it is an "elegantly structured tale of lives laced together with tragedy and guilt." Ide also praised Theron's performance and concluded that it is a "quality production." According to Time Out, "Arriaga has delivered a compelling and entertaining debut that stays true to his earlier interests."
Box office
The film grossed $58,749 in its first weekend in North America. As of November 30, 2009 it has grossed $200,399 domestically and grossed a total of $4,456,346 worldwide.See also
- The Burning PlainEl Llano en LlamasEl Llano en llamas is a collection of short stories written in Spanish by Mexican author Juan Rulfo and first published in 1953.- Literary Reputation of the Author:...
, Mexican literary classic of the same name