Utterly Colorless
Late in 19th century through early in the 20th century, settlers tried, and for the most part succeeded in killing the native Selk'nam population. The Selk'nam were one of three indigenous tribes populating the Tierra del Fuego archipelago in South America. The Selk'nam, which had an estimated population of 4,000 people, saw their numbers reduced to approximately 500.
"White on White" is a Spanish-Chilean drama directed by Theo Court depicting this genocide using a hired photographer as its central character. It is the Chilean entry for this year's Best Foreign Film.
Pedro (Alfredo Castro) is a photographer hired to take wedding pictures of Mr. Porter, a wealthy older man, and his child bride, Sara (Esther Vega Pérez Torres). Even though Porter is in charge of everything that happens, we never see him, so the wedding photos are of just Sara.
During the photo session, Pedro struggles with his attraction to Sara, which eventually causes him problems. When the wedding gets delayed, Pedro's task becomes photographing the killing of Tierra del Fuego's indigenous people.
Just because a film is about a very important topic does not automatically make it worthwhile. Aside from being great looking, "White on White" offers very little. Pedro's character is never fleshed out. We learn almost nothing about what makes him tick. Considering that Pedro has by far the most screen time, it's borderline absurd that we don't have any feelings towards him. The whole thing is as colorless as white on white.
White on White Movie Review By David Kempler
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