Song Without a Name

'Song without Name' has many parallels with Alfonso Cuaron's Roma. Both use the tragic past of their nations to portray their unique stories. But unlike the Mexican film, Melina León's one explores the relationship between two individuals forgotten by the system. With beautiful black and white photography, good acting, and some mystery, this film represents a very solid debut for León.

This fact-based but atmospheric tale of the efforts of a young mother and a closeted journalist to uncover an infant selling ring in Peru during the country's political turmoil of the 1980s provides a unique take on a shocking news story told from a highly personal, exceedingly inventive perspective. With an excellent lead performance by Pamela Mendoza, gorgeous black-and-white cinematography and an ethereal original score, director Melina Leon's debut feature tells a captivating story all its own while simultaneously paying homage to Latin American political thrillers (most notably Chilean-based offerings like "Missing" and "Spider"), as well as tales of minority disenfranchisement and exploitation (such as Mexico's "Roma"). Admittedly, the film could use a little more back story for context, and it sometimes tries to do a little too much, with some story threads not fleshed out as thoroughly as they could be. Overall, though, this is a fine initial offering from another promising new talent, a filmmaker who clearly demonstrates a great deal of vision and imagination in telling a story that could have easily been presented much more conventionally in lesser skilled hands.