Anti-Western The Western genre, with all its attributes like cowboys, mustangs, prairies, colts, winchesters, vast expanses, wild Indians, is inevitably associated with the spirit of freedom, independence, discovery, etc. There, “on the free, in the pampas” dreamed to escape millions of boys who read Fenimore Cooper, Main Reed and Carl May (where without this German) in the century before last. And with the advent of cinema, the percentage of fascinated by strong, strong-willed men who solve all problems with the help of honest duels, defeating villains with packs and dashing whiskey in saloons went beyond all possible limits. Gradually, however, the charm passed, but today no-no, and the golden age of Western cinema, which came to the 50s - 70s of the last century, is remembered with slight nostalgia. But not all of them.
Catalan Oscar Aybar in his debut film happily walked heavy boots on the American idea, the American understanding of freedom and the national American genre of art, leaving no stone unturned from them, scathing mocking, splashing poisonous saliva and ridiculing everything that on the other side of the ocean has long been considered a sacred cow. Not a single characteristic sign of a Western, not a single stamp, not a single feature escaped from his attention - everything that can and cannot be dissected, turned upside down with meat, perversely raped and presented to the public for fun, like alcoholic freaks in a glass jar, on whom it is disgusting to look - and the gaze cannot be taken away. The Equal Opportunity Society, self-organizing democratic institutions, individualism – and ultimately the American dream itself in Atoladero – are ruthlessly obstructed and thrown into the trash, along with the Western genre as such, an absolutely meaningless phenomenon recognized by Senor Aybar, intended not even for parody (parody what they love), but for recycling in the world cinematic garbage.
In order to demonstrate the result of the notorious “American Dream” as vividly as possible, the Catalan sat in a cinematic time machine and went to the near future. 2048. Since then, no serious cataclysms have occurred with the planet, no global wars and upheavals have occurred - except that several satellites have gone out of orbit, and most of humanity has moved to megacities. Those who remained outside the city continue to live as their ancestors lived fifty, one hundred, two hundred years ago. In the desert town of Atolladero, Texas, all power belongs to the Judge, who at 150 years old has lost his mind. Executors of his will are half-crazy Madden (his role starred pop punk star Iggy Pop) and Sheriff Nick. The first keeps the entire population at bay, the second tries to maintain the appearance of legality among cowboys and prostitutes with the help of a young policeman Lenny. However, the judicial punishment here is simple and understandable - a bullet in the head and all the short time. Bandits and thieves, as well as unfamiliar preachers, are not on ceremony in Atoladero.
One day, Lenny decides to go into the big world, and immediately turns into a stranger, whom the hunt begins. One against all, and only a faithful colt (with a laser sight) is the only ally. Here it is – the quintessence of the Western: the wild expanses, the gang, and the lone hero. Only there is no gang - just, the inhabitants living under the laws of the Wild West of the last century, inevitably turn into bandits. Nor is there a noble hero. A cowardly guy suffering from epilepsy gets out of many troubles thanks to happy occasions, while his pursuers release each other’s guts on their own, in full accordance with the director’s perverse sense of humor. A good cowboy is a dead cowboy, a good sheriff is a dead sheriff, a good Indian is a living Indian. Unlike the palefaces, who turn from the living to the dead in various cunning ways, the dead Indians at Aybar come to life. After all, this was their land, and the descendants of the colonizers had nothing to be proud of. Especially when it comes to Westerns.
“Atolladero” not only deromantizes the Wild West, it explicitly states that the uglier and vile society that arose in those parts was impossible to build. That Westerns romanticizing absolute freedom and individualism are lies and deceptions, that any dream, even an American one, will inevitably crash into a dirty reality. But did anyone see it as anything other than a beautiful story? Or did you see him as a guide to action? And did it make sense to mock virtual reality so cruelly? Oscar Aybar's film is full of sarcasm and an evil grin. How fair they are, and whether they deserve a Western, let each decide for himself. Probably because of his attitude towards the United States. The Catalan clearly disliked this country and its culture for something.