Heroism in Violent Times: Amat Escalante

Alejandro Jiménez Arrazquito y Mónica Medina Cuevas (Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla)

Amat Escalante’s films are characterized by their explicit and unflinching depictions of various forms of violence—an approach that has provoked significant controversy. This audiovisual essay focuses on three of Escalante’s feature films produced between 2010 and 2023: Heli (2013), The Untamed (La región salvaje, 2016), and Lost in the Night (Perdidos en la noche, 2023). The analysis explores the intersection between violence and the potential for heroism among the protagonists in these films. It argues that the narrative construction of these characters reveals recurring representational patterns through which certain heroic traits may be discerned. The central aim is to examine how these traits emerge in relation to the violence that permeates the storylines.

The selected films depict situations of extreme violence, often set in remote, non-urban environments. Their protagonists—Heli, Estela, Alejandra, Emiliano, and Mónica—occupy narrative positions that suggest the potential for heroism. But can they truly be considered heroes or heroines? What defines heroism in a character? And how does the potential for heroic action shift when characters are immersed in contexts dominated by lawlessness, crime, corruption, poverty, and systemic injustice? 

This video essay is based on a textual film analysis grounded in methodological considerations drawn from Francesco Casetti and Federico Di Chio’s (1991) framework, which emphasizes a close review of a film’s fundamental components. The analysis followed three key stages. First, longitudinal segmentation was conducted to identify sequences with the highest density of relevant analytical elements aligned with the study’s objectives. Second, these sequences were subjected to transversal segmentation, allowing for the identification and detailed description of their constituent cinematic components—such as mise-en-scène, framing, and editing patterns. Third, the separately observed elements were recomposed to assess their interrelationships and interpret them within the broader conceptual framework.

The protagonists and their narrative functions were analyzed through two key dimensions: heroism and violence. For heroism, the analysis employed Jerónimo Rivera’s (2019) conceptualization of the protagonist’s journey. This included consideration of physical and psychological traits; anthropological characteristics such as age, occupation, and gender; narrative missions and motivations; obstacles encountered; and the transformational arcs experienced throughout the plot.

In terms of violence, the study drew on José Sanmartín’s typology (as presented in Iborra and Sanmartín, 2011), examining: the types of harm inflicted (physical, sexual, emotional, and/or economic); the profiles of victims (e.g., women, children, older adults); the contexts in which violence occurs (domestic, educational, professional, public, or cultural spaces); and the types of aggressors (youth, terrorists, psychopaths, or members of organized crime networks).

After analyzing both heroism and violence in the selected sequences, the findings were cross-referenced to facilitate a deeper discussion of the relationship between these two dimensions. This analysis was then translated into the audiovisual form of the video essay.

This study is part of a broader research initiative, Heroism (or Its Absence) in Ibero-American Cinema, conducted by scholars from various Ibero-American countries under the umbrella of the Ibero-American Network for Research in Audiovisual Narratives (Red INAV).