''Oedipus Mayor '' ( es, Edipo alcalde) is a 1996 Colombian

tragedy Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy ...

film, produced by Tomás Zapata and Jorge Sánchez, directed by

Jorge Alí Triana Jorge Ali Triana Varon (born April 4, 1942 in Bogotá, Colombia) is a Colombian theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production s ...

. Set in strife-ridden, 20th-century Colombia, the film is a modern-day interpretation of

Sophocles Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or c ...

' classical Greek tragedy '' Oedipus Rex''. The film was selected as the Colombian entry for the

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the

69th Academy Awards The 69th Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) took place on March 24, 1997, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles beginning at 6:00 p.m. PST / 9:00 p.m. EST. During the cerem ...

, but was not accepted as a nominee.Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Plot

Set amidst the rebel wars (representing the Theban plagues) of contemporary Colombia, young Mayor Edipo must mediate a peace deal between conflicting guerrilla groups and the army. It is raining when he leaves. His journey is interrupted when he gets into a shoot-out on a lonely bridge. Returning fire, Edipo somehow escapes. As soon as he gets to town he hears that a prominent leader Layo was brutally slain. No one knows who shot him. Meanwhile, a blind coffin-maker

Tiresias In Greek mythology, Tiresias (; grc, Τειρεσίας, Teiresías) was a blind prophet of Apollo in Thebes, famous for clairvoyance and for being transformed into a woman for seven years. He was the son of the shepherd Everes and the nym ...

wanders town making dire prophecies concerning Edipo's future. It is he who tells the mayor that Layo was murdered by a family member. Edipo's fate is sealed when he gets involved with the beautiful and much older Yocasta, a woman who last had sex thirty years before with her husband Layo. She got pregnant and bore a son ... tragedy ensues.

Cast

* Jorge Perugorria - Edipo *

Ángela Molina Ángela Molina Tejedor (born 5 October 1955) is a Spanish actress. Aside from her performances in Spanish films, she has starred in multiple international productions, particularly in a number of Italian films and television series. Family Mol ...

- Yocasta *

Francisco Rabal Francisco Rabal Valera (8 March 1926 – 29 August 2001), better known as Paco Rabal, was a Spanish actor, director, and screenwriter born in Águilas, a town in the south-western part of the province of Murcia, Spain. Throughout his career, Raba ...

- Tiresias * Jairo Camargo - Creonte *

Jorge Martínez de Hoyos Jorge Martínez de Hoyos (September 25, 1920 – May 6, 1997) was a Mexican actor whose career spanned five decades from the 1940s till his death. He appeared in both American and Mexican films and television, with prominent roles in ''The Magn ...

- Priest * Miriam Colón - Deyanira * Juan Sebastián Aragón - Police Commander *

Armando Gutiérrez Armando may refer to: * Armando (given name) * Armando (artist) (1929–2018), the name used by Dutch artist Herman Dirk van Dodeweerd * Armando (producer) Armando Gallop (sometimes written as Armando Gallup) (February 12, 1970 – December 17, ...

- Army Captain *

Marcela Agudelo Marcela is a feminine given name which may refer to: Musicians *Marcela Bovio, Mexican musician * Marcela Lucatelli (born 1988), Brazilian composer * Marcela Morelo, Argentine singer-songwriter * Marcela Rodríguez, Mexican composer Politicians ...

- *

Fabiana Medina Fabiana may refer to: * ''Fabiana'' (plant), a genus of evergreen shrubs ** '' Fabiana imbricata'' * Fabiana (name), a Brazilian and Italian given name (includes a list of people with the name) {{Disambiguation ...

- Guerrilla Child *

Juan Carlos Arango ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, t ...

- AUC Commander *

Magali Caicedo Magaly or Magali is a given name. Magali may refer to: *Magali Amadei (born 1974), French fashion model * Magali Babin (born 1967), Canadian musician and composer *Magali Febles (born 1964), Dominican beauty pageant director *Magali Harvey (born 19 ...

Manuel José Chávez Manuel may refer to: People * Manuel (name) * Manuel (Fawlty Towers), a fictional character from the sitcom ''Fawlty Towers'' * Charlie Manuel, manager of the Philadelphia Phillies * Manuel I Komnenos, emperor of the Byzantine Empire * M ...

- Guerrilla Child * Sigifredo Vega *

Alfonso Ortiz Alfonso Alex Ortiz (April 30, 1939 Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, New Mexico – January 26, 1997) was a Native American cultural anthropologist. Life Ortiz graduated from the University of New Mexico in 1961, and from the University of Chicago with a ma ...

- Landowners *

Héctor Rivas Héctor Rivas (born 27 September 1968) is a Venezuelan footballer. He played in 19 matches for the Venezuela national football team from 1987 to 1995. He was also part of Venezuela's squad for the 1987 Copa América The 1987 Copa América was ...

Andrés Felipe Martínez Andres or Andrés may refer to: *Andres, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Will County, Illinois, US *Andres, Pas-de-Calais, a commune in Pas-de-Calais, France *Andres (name) *Hurricane Andres * "Andres" (song), a 1994 song by L7 See also ...

* Raúl Santa * Salomón Vega * Jaime Forero *Carlos Vega

References

External links

* 1996 films Colombian drama films 1990s Spanish-language films 1990s war films Films based on works by Sophocles Films set in Colombia Incest in film 1990s political films Works based on Oedipus Rex Modern adaptations of works by Sophocles {{Colombia-film-stub