Following the remarkable success of Parque Lezama, Juan José Campanella’s rumination on old age and friendship, Netflix continues its commitment to Argentine cinema with the release of El Último Gigante (The Giant Falls). This ambitious production takes us to the heart of the Misiones jungle to remind us that the wounds of the past only heal when faced with an open heart.
Directed by the prolific Marcos Carnevale, the film paints an intimate yet universal portrait of the emotional debt between an absent father and a wounded son – and explores the fragility of human bonds with surgical precision.
In it, Iguazú Falls, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, transcends the setting to become a cathartic character. Carnevale and his longtime cinematographer, Horacio Maira, harness the monumental scale of this landscape to ask: Is it possible to forgive someone who was never there? How can someone earn redemption?
With the strength of its emotional connections and the depth of its performances, El Último Gigante is one of the most moving and visually stunning films of the season.
What Is El Último Gigante About?
For many, family is everything. Ultimately, nothing defines us as profoundly as our origin. But what happens when the father breaks that sacred bond? El Último Gigante explores this wound: the weight of abandonment and the indelible scars it leaves on those left behind.
After nearly three decades of silence, a father in the twilight of his life and his now adult son must finally confront the past. This drama immerses us in the life of Boris (Matías Mayer), a skilled tour guide in Misiones whose daily life unfolds amid the majesty of the landscape and the calm of nature. Like many abandoned sons, Boris has learned to live with the emptiness. Yet he’s still angry, perhaps because it is the only link he has left to his father. Boris’s quiet life is shattered when Julián (Oscar Martínez) reappears. Cornered by a terminal diagnosis, the elderly man needs to “set things right.”
Interestingly, it is Julián’s wife (Silvia Kutika) who, with devastating simplicity, captures the heart of the story when she tells Boris: “If you give yourself permission to talk to him, you’ll live better, and he’ll die better.” These words set the film’s course, but don’t be fooled. El Último Gigante is not a formulaic reconciliation drama. Just when you expect a healing embrace, the plot hits you with an unexpected twist: Julián asks his son for an extreme favor, once again testing the limits of blood ties.
Martínez and Mayer Make a Powerful Duo
El Último Gigante belongs to Martínez, the first Latino to receive the Volpi Cup in Venice. Through his presence, his bearing, and his gait alone, he brings Julian to life even as he’s a character defined by restraint – a man who conveys the weight of his bad decisions with nothing more than a glance.
At his side, Mayer sustains the acting duel with a piercing honesty. Every time Boris reflects on his childhood, Mayer shows us how the past is not something left behind, but a territory one inhabits – and should make peace with. The chemistry between the two is such that, even in their most tense encounters, the relationship between father and son never feels overly hostile.
Misiones is Its Own Character
With its breathtaking scenery, El Último Gigante invites us to find a little peace in northeastern Argentina. It’s shot almost entirely in the province of Misiones and ventures into the jungle in sublime and surprising ways, achieving an emotional intensity that, at times, suspends time and leaves a lump in your throat.
In this setting, the humidity and roar of Iguazú Falls stop being a backdrop and become a living presence, a mirror reflecting the intensity of everything Julián and Boris have kept silent for decades. Or, as Martínez told Clarín, the film’s greatest strength is the contrast between an “intimate, personal, and private story set against a grandiose natural backdrop.”
Should I Watch It?
It may not reinvent the wheel and it can veer into sentimentality, but Netflix’s El Último Gigante is certainly worth a watch. It’ll have you questioning your own legacy, thinking about time lost, and the power of forgiveness – and maybe planning a trip to Iguazú Falls.
