Oedipus Mayor


Oedipus Mayor is a 1996 Colombian tragedy film, produced by Tomás Zapata and Jorge Sánchez, directed by Jorge Alí Triana. Set in strife-ridden, 20th-century Colombia, the film is a modern-day interpretation of Sophocles' classical Greek tragedy Oedipus Rex. The film was selected as the Colombian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 69th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.

Plot

Set amidst the rebel wars of contemporary Colombia, young Mayor Edipo must mediate a peace deal between conflicting guerrilla groups and the army. It is raining when he leaves. His journey is interrupted when he gets into a shoot-out on a lonely bridge. Returning fire, Edipo somehow escapes. As soon as he gets to town he hears that a prominent leader Layo was brutally slain. No one knows who shot him. Meanwhile, a blind coffin-maker Tiresias wanders town making dire prophecies concerning Edipo's future. It is he who tells the mayor that Layo was murdered by a family member. Edipo's fate is sealed when he gets involved with the beautiful and much older Yocasta, a woman who last had sex thirty years before with her husband Layo. She got pregnant and bore a son... tragedy ensues.

Cast