Nazareno Cruz and the Wolf

Leonardo Favio's 1975 Argentine film rests on the lobizón legend of Guaraní belief. According to it, the seventh son of a family turns into a wolf at the full moon; Nazareno Cruz was born under that curse and everyone in the village knows it. When he falls in love the devil appears with an offer: give up the woman and receive all the wealth in the world, or refuse and the curse will be fulfilled. The film adapts the tale from a radio drama and tells it in the language of folk narrative, with poetic narration, a chorus and supernatural scenes together. Favio gives village life and the pressure of a community in detail. It is still cited as the most watched film in Argentine cinema. Who it's for: viewers who like Latin American cinema and adaptations of folk tales. Who it's not for: anyone expecting realism; the film is entirely in the register of a fable.