Descripción: In rural Mexico, resistance to modernization reveals the diversity of indigenous peoples and Afro-descendant communities, honoring daily work and preserving cultural identity. A “Lost Atlantis” is explored, where diverse possibilities resist the rapid march of progress.
Teaching ideas: The film’s central metaphor of a “Lost Atlantis” of communities that resist the march of progress is a good starting point for a writing exercise in which students can freewrite for five minutes on what they imagine this Atlantis looks like, then share their responses and discuss how the film confirms, complicates, or surprises their expectations. From there, the main activity can be a short review essay in which students argue for or against the film as a tool for understanding resistance and cultural identity in rural Mexico, using the subjunctive to express opinions and evaluations and selecting at least one specific scene as evidence for their argument. To prepare for the essay, students can work in pairs to identify and describe their chosen scene—what they see, who speaks, what is shown and what is left unsaid—and to practice descriptive vocabulary and the past tenses before moving to the more analytical written task.