battle in heaven ( batalla en el cielo ) be a heavy hand symbolic linking of class colonialism with sexual obsession and violence . we get a lot of nationalistic symbolism a the central marcos and bodyguard to the general and spend a lot of time supervise the raising and the lowering of the mexican flag ( and i assume the various double entendres of up and down the flagpole and a lot more phallic image penetrate vulva stand in ) . we see sudden bloody violence spur by sexual and other frustration or just that writer or director carlos reygadas have see a lot of asian extreme cinema with similar theme . we get a lot of control religious symbolism and culminating in a self flagellating pilgrimage . cynicism about celebrity and soccer player be throw into the mix as well . compare to bubble and the use of nonprofessional actor here seem like an exploitation of their face and especially of their body and with very long close ups of every part of them in unsympathetic pose and a the camera be almost a documentary like static a in the work of michael haneke . fill with tawdry and explicit male fantasy that could be construe a misogynistic and it wasn not a coincidence that i be the only woman in the theater and let alone that most of the old men be wear long raincoat ( though two do walk out half way through a even they could figure out it be much more political than erotic ) . other than a symbol and none of the character make much sense a human being and with the possible exception of marcos wife and who i felt somewhat kindly towards about her involvement in a bizarre kidnapping . the general daughter and anas somewhat old boyfriend jaime be at least cute and but her sexual appetite seem a lot more fantasy than even realistic a a criticism of the teasing of the pampered upper class leech . the sound design be intrigue and a sound from a radio and a tractor and a religious procession and service all seem to set marcos off in his existential act . commendably and the subtitle be black outline for legibility and so one could focus on read those instead of look at bore full frontal nudity and sexual act .