Movies | Philosophy

‘Hija’ and ‘Armas Blancas’: Water as a Symbol for Growth

Credit: Festival del Cinema Ibero-Latino Americano di Trieste

On the third day of the Ibero-Latino Americano Film Festival of Trieste I saw two coming-of-age films, ‘Hija’ and ‘Armas Blancas’. Even though they are radically different on a surface level, they are connected by a fundamental symbol: Water.

‘Hija’

Credit: Doménica Films

‘Hija’ follows Juana, a teenage girl who lost her mother and has an alcoholic father. There are differing versions of the story of how Juana’s mother died. One story is that her mother killed herself because she was depressed. This is the story that China (a family friend) tells Juana when she asks her for the truth. It’s also the story that her father tells her and he blames himself for it. Then another of Juana’s friends tells her the two other stories he heard. In one he heard that her dad killed his mother, and in the other that her mother shot herself by accident. All of these stories conflict, only one is true, and Juana is determined to find the truth.

There’s just one problem, Juana keeps repressing the memory of that event. The film follows her unlocking that memory and learning the truth of her mother’s death. And…