The Return of the Living Dead. Queer Failure and Capitalism in Papu Curotto's Esteros

This article analyzes the film Esteros (2016) by Papu Curotto (with script by Andi Nachón) through the notions of success and failure viewed as mechanisms of capitalism for the control of bodies, lives and subjectivities. The film shows the amorous reunion of the protagonists, now adults, after a se...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Rubino, Atilio
Format: Online
Language:spa
Published: Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios sobre Cultura y Sociedad 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://revistas.unc.edu.ar/index.php/astrolabio/article/view/44188
Description
Summary:This article analyzes the film Esteros (2016) by Papu Curotto (with script by Andi Nachón) through the notions of success and failure viewed as mechanisms of capitalism for the control of bodies, lives and subjectivities. The film shows the amorous reunion of the protagonists, now adults, after a sexual-affective relationship that was cut short in their childhood. In this way, the film alternates between two timelines and thus moves away from the idea of family homophobia or the environment as the reason for the separation of the lovers; on the contrary, it is precisely capitalism and the notion of success that generated the estrangement of the children, as well as a heteronormative adult life in the case of one of them. Hence, the zombie becomes a symbolic figure that runs through the whole film and alterns between two possible poles linked to success as capitalist alienation or failure as a bet for life in its qualitative dimension. At the same time, this framework of analysis allows us to redefine the importance of landscape and nature in the film from the affective dimension associated with queer childhood.