Eréndira, ikikunari - A Juan Mora Catlett film on the conquest of Mexico

Short Synopsis

ERENDIRA IKIKUNARI is a beautifully shot action film that recreates the 16th century legend of Eréndira, a young Purépecha woman who became an icon of bravery during the destruction of indigenous Mexico by the Spanish conquistadors. When the Spanish arrive, they take advantage of the discord and conflict among the Mexican natives, reaping the benefits of a region divided. Eréndira, a young Purépecha women on verge of marriage, refuses to allow her land to be destroyed and stands up to the social conventions prohibiting women to participate in battle. In the face of the invasion, she steals and learns to ride a horse against the Spanish, winning the respect of her tribal leaders. Along her amazing journey, she becomes a symbol of strength and resistance within her culture. This feature length film was shot entirely in the original Purépecha language.

 

Synopsis

Through the drawings of a codex, read by an old Indian, we find out that during the conquest of Mexico in the XVI century, fright filled the hearth of Tangaxoan, Michoacan’s young lord. Through oracles he had heard of the imminent arrival of the foreign conquerors, preceded by their fame as invincible gods, who brought destruction and death.

Erendira, a young Indian woman, ignorant of the situation, prepares herself for her wedding to Nanuma, a brave warrior.

When the invaders arrive, Lord Tangaxoan hides. When the foreigners attempt to seize his treasure, only the royal concubines defend it, beating them with clubs. The Indian warriors abstain from intervening. Erendira breaks off with Nanuma when she witnesses his cowardice towards the intruders.
Lord Tangaxoan is discovered and in order to save his dominion he celebrates an alliance with the Europeans.

Timas, one of the great warriors, and Erendira’s uncle, refuses to accept his Lord’s capitulation and in order to fight the invaders takes shelter in a ruined fortress, with other rebellious warriors including Nanuma, who’s secretly spying for Tangaxoan.

Faced with the example of the women’s fierceness and the great warriors’ cowardice, Erendira joins the resistance, in spite of Nanuma’s displeasure and rousing the admiration of the formers younger brother, T'sihue.
Tangaxoan, wishing to demonstrate his good will towards his new allies, orders that an Indian army, supervised by three European horsemen, slaughter Timas and the rebels.

The army puts the fortress under siege and Erendira, disguised as a boy to elude Timas’ and Nanuma’s opposition, joins the battle. T’sihue discovers her and is very impressed by her bravery.

In the first clash the enemy army is defeated. In the following confusion Erendira seizes a horse. When Nanuma discovers her, the beast is taken away from her to be sacrificed. Nevertheless she manages to learn to ride it and demonstrates her new ability, to the amazement of Timas and the rebel nobles.

In spite of Nanuma’s indignation over Erendira’s "unwomanly behavior", Timas forgives her and allows her to keep the horse, forbidding her to ever enter the battle again. Nanuma, who’s very angry and fears discovery, decides to change sides and joins Tangaxoan’s army.

When the fortress is attacked anew Timas is slain. As the rebels are on the verge of defeat, Erendira appears suddenly riding the horse. Flustering the enemy, who believe her to be a goddess, as they are not used seeing a woman on horseback. She also succeeds, with her incredible presence, in preventing the massacre of women, children and elders by the enemy army.

After the enemies’ departure, Erendira returns to the battlefield in order to perform the funeral rites of Timas’ corpse. Nanuma follows her and shoots her treacherously with an arrow. T’sihue, who followed both, enraged kills his brother and then turns to help Erendira, but to his great surprise she has vanished. The old Indian narrator tells us that Erendira disappeared into the woods and was never heard of again.

At the end we discover that the old Indian who told us this story, is no one else than T’sihue, Erendira’s admirer who killed Nanuma.
Thus a legend is born.