El olvido – Oblivion (2008)

Directed by: Heddy Honigmann | 93 minutes | documentary

Sometimes people forget that we actually have it really good in the Netherlands. Everyone complains and grumbles and gets stressed by the busy lives they lead. The documentary ‘El olvido’ by Heddy Honigmann not only wants to confront people with the facts, but also wants to show a different world. A world in which people are also happy, but have a completely different life than the Dutch can imagine. Let’s hope that the people of Lima, who contributed to this documentary, will never be forgotten.

Heddy lets waiters, shopkeepers, bums, shoe shiners and street performers speak. They tell their story about their city, Lima, the forgotten city. They tell about their lives and how they serve politics, while politics has only brought them misery. They tell about their daily life, which consists of juggling or performing acrobatic tricks on the street. Major (political) crises and earth-shattering events are not discussed. Personal stories and problems, on the other hand, all the more so. Yet it is not portrayed as one big misery. The people in this documentary are happy. They are happy with what they have. A woman who lives in a shack with her mother and son, is separated from her husband, and has no money to make ends meet, is still happy because she lives with the people she loves. A mother and her three daughters tell of the eldest daughter who has lost the family when she was hit by a car in the street. These emotions are real and pure. What is most moving is the story of the boy who shines shoes on the street. He does not go to school, has no wishes and no dreams. He doesn’t know where to look when asked about his dreams, but the look on his face says it all. Fortunately, Honigmann has chosen to show the positive sides and not dwell too much on the political events in Peru.

Whether it’s because Heddy Honigmann herself was born in Lima, or because, with her experience, she just knows exactly how to make a gripping documentary, one thing is for sure: After watching this documentary, Peru will never be the forgotten country. to be. It now has a face.