The Historical depictions in the film, the Mission

HST119

"The Mission" directed by Roland Joffe

- The Historical depictions in the film, the Mission -

Has anyone ever invaded your house before? Or have you ever been enslaved by people you don't know before? You're home may be a very sacred and comforting place for you and your family, but during the 1750's in South America, home to many Indian tribes called the Guarani, were subtle to enslavement by powers that were nearly beyond their control. In the movie, "The Mission", directed by Roland Joffe, it tells a story of Father Gabriel, a Jesuit priest, and Rodriguez Mendoza, a converted Jesuit, who join a fight to help protect Guarani Indians and their land during the time of the Treaty of Madrid of 1750, which Spain gave the parts of South America to Portugal. The film depicts scenes with a great deal of realism and accuracy, but there are some minor inaccuracies, such as the portrayal of Rodriguez Mendoza, Father Gabriel, and Cardinal Altaminaro.

Adolfo Nicolás, Superior General of the Society o...

Diego Laínez, Laynez, or Lainez, (1512-19 January...

Father Peter Hans Kolvenbach, Superior General eme...

In the film, "The Mission", it accurately establishes the conflicts and political events of the Spanish, Portuguese and the Guarani Indians. Before the movie begins, the audience is shown, in clear dialogue, that the1750 Treaty of Madrid ceded South American land from Spain to Portugal. Before this treaty, there was also an occurrence when Spain and Portugal, two Catholic nations, had negotiated the treaty of Tordesillas, in which the two countries split the western world into two parts where Spain can have one half and Portugal the other. On the land that Portugal was to claim, missionaries, like Father Gabriel's, had already set up missions. To better the economy for Portugal, the Spanish Church was sent in to get the Jesuits out; this was true in the case of Father Gabriel and his converts.