The movie takes place in 1847 Buenos Aires during the dictatorship of Juan Manuel de Rosas. It focuses on the young and wealthy, Camila O'Gorman, who eventually falls in love with the Jesuit priest, Father Ladislao Gutierrez. The two begin a forbidden love affair. They run off together to another town but are soon discovered by a mutual acquaintance. They are given till the next morning before they are arrested in order to allow them to escape. However they choose not to run and are put in prison. Her family begs him to show mercy but Camila's father writes and asks the governor to give his daughter the death penalty. At the end, even though Camila has discovered that she is pregnant, both of the lovers are shot by a firing squad.
Camila provides much insight into Latin American culture during the 19th century. Life in nineteenth-century Argentina is accurately depicted in this film. We see the oppression of women. The women in the film wear veils to cover their faces and spent much of their time at home or at church. The film also shows them wearing Victorian style clothing, which was common during this era. The wealthy wore clothing imported from Europe. We see the influence of the dictator Juan Manuel de Rosas. The Argentinians are shown with bits of the color red on their clothing in obedience to Rosas. We also see other elements of Latin American culture, such as siesta.
There are several important themes seen in the film. For one, we see throughout the film a general condemnation of dictatorship, specifically the dictatorship of Rosas. The relationship between Camila and her father mirror the regime of Juan Manuel de Rosas. And Camila speaks out against both of them. Camila's father is a harsh and violent man who demands total obedience from his family. An example of his cruelty is at the beginning of the film, Adolfo O'Gorman catches Camila playing with a litter of newborn kittens. He then has these kittens put in a bag and drowned. He also locks his own mother up out of disapprove and does not allow her any visitors, not even her own grandchildren. He rules through a climate of fear, much like Rosas. Evidence in the movie of the iron fist that Juan Manuel de Rosas is the incident with the books. Camila is shown borrowing books from a man in the town. Later in the film, Camila is walking down the street and sees that he has been murdered and his head displayed on a pole. This was done by the regime as a result of the censorship, including book control, imposed by Rosas.
Another main theme that we see is an argument for a strong role for women. Camila is the strong female character that breaks the traditional gender roles of this time period. In 19th century Argentina, women were restricted and were not looked upon equally as men. Women were though to have two options in life: either marry or become a nun. Adolfo O'Gorman at one point in the film even remarks that, "A single woman is chaos. Marriage is order." Women were expected to be quiet. They were expected to be modest. In the film, we see the women covering their heads with shawls and bathing with a slip covering their bodies. They spent much time at church. And they were expected to obey these social norms. Camila is the exact opposite of these norms. She is a rebel. She knows who she is and what she wants. She doesn't let societal rules dictate who she can love. While the other women accept everything blindly, Camila questions things. This includes questioning her father and the dictator. An example of this happens at the dinner table when Camila makes a remark about how it was wrong for the bookkeeper to be killed and she is immediately reprimanded by her father.
Overall, I would consider this a very successful film. It makes a strong case against oppression and presents this argument in an intense way. It helps to show people what life was really like during this time. I think it is some way a celebration of the people like Camila who would not back down and were willing to stand for what they believed in, whether this be love or political freedoms.
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