The Strategy of the Snail

The film opens with a televised visit from a news reporter, Jose Antonio Pupo, who probes a man named Gustavo Calle Isaza, known as ‘El Paisa’, about a baffling claim from Bogotá’s squatters: when the absentee landlord returned, the very house they occupied had somehow been moved. This interview threads through the narrative, blending the journalist’s questions with the villagers’ unfolding ordeal and giving the viewer a constant thread of doubt and curiosity.

Six years earlier, the story centers on two adjacent houses that symbolize two different acts of resistance. The old mansion, La Casa Uribe, has become a home for a diverse mix of residents, while its neighbor, La Pajarera, stands nearby as a quieter witness to the social drama. The scene is set for a confrontation with the wealthy landowner, Dr. Holguin, whose eviction order unsettles everyone. The first clash with the authorities is dramatic and brutal: the Birdhouse tenants lock themselves inside and fire upon the police, a child is killed by the return fire, and the tenants finally capitulate as the eviction is completed.

Following the eviction, the people of La Casa Uribe grapple with an uncertain future, unable to find a new place to live. They enlist the services of Perro Romero, a tenacious lawyer who relies on street-smart legal tricks rather than formal training to stall the process. Holguin’s pressure grows, and Romero is kidnapped and beaten as part of a ruthless tactic to bend the tenants to surrender. Into this volatile mix steps Jacinto Ibarburen, a Spaniard with a sharp mind and a rebellious streak forged during the Spanish Civil War. An intellectual with a practical streak, Jacinto hatches a daring plan: dismantle the interior of La Casa Uribe—walls, windows, bathtubs, kitchens, toilets, roofs—then relocate everything to another site. His background as a stagehand becomes the key, as he demonstrates to Romero how a rope and pulley, used on the Colón theater stage, can make a whole house mobilize.

Jacinto’s idea earns the support of the other tenants, and they begin the painstaking process of stripping the house down from the inside. Along the way, Misia Triana, played by Delfina Guido, discovers a wall bearing the silhouette of the Virgin Mary, an image that strengthens their resolve and gives Misia a personal motive to stay involved. As the interior is gradually removed, the stakes rise. Romero—seeking more time—feeds a calculated story to Holguin’s lawyer, Victor Honorio Mosquera, claiming that the tenants only wanted to repaint before their departure. The lie buys them minutes, but the moment of reckoning arrives with explosive force: a huge blast rips through the facade, and dust swallows the street.

In the aftermath, a wall bearing a defiant message stands among the rubble, a stark reminder of their audacious act: > Here’s your motherfucking painted house. The film then returns to the interview setup, with Jose Antonio Pupo revisiting the scene with Calle Isaza, and it closes with the former inhabitants gathered on a hill overlooking Bogotá, a panoramic capstone that suggests a hard-won sense of community and resilience.

• The film’s alternating perspectives emphasize collective action, improvisation, and the stubborn hope of people who refuse to be erased from their own neighborhood. The narrative is anchored by strong performances from the central cast, whose characters’ fates hinge on cunning, courage, and a shared belief that space can be claimed through ingenuity and solidarity.

Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 14:05