The Secret in Their Eyes
A retired legal counselor writes a novel hoping to find closure for one of his past unresolved homicide cases and for his unreciprocated love with his superior - both of which still haunt him decades later.
This Argentine crime drama film directed, produced and edited by Juan José Campanella and written by Eduardo Sacheri and Campanella, is based on Sacheri's novel "La Pregunta De Sus Ojos" (The Question in Their Eyes).
The setting of the film ties its characters to the political situation in Argentina in the period just before and after Argentina's Dirty War and the country's last military dictatorship. The final three years of the presidency of Isabel Martínez de Perón saw great political turmoil, with both leftist violence and state-sponsored terrorism. A military coup in 1976 triggered the Dirty War and the regime's direct participation in state terrorism. The dictatorship's National Reorganization Process lasted from 1976 to 1983, marred by widespread human rights violations that to several sources amounted to a genocide.
[screens Oct. 18 Tuesday 3:30 PM, Oct. 20 Thursday 5:30 PM]
A Red Bear
Oso (Julio Chávez), also known as "The Bear," is released from prison after seven years. In flashback, we see the robbery and shoot-out with police that led to his arrest, which took place on his daughter's first birthday. He returns to his hometown, a depressed suburb of Buenos Aires, fully aware that his wife, Natalia (Soledad Villamil), has moved on and is living with another man, Sergio (Luis Machín). But he's determined to establish a relationship with Alicia (Agostina Lage), his daughter, and to collect the money owed to him by an oily local crime lord known as "The Turk" (René Lavan). Of course, things don't go exactly as Oso would like. Natalia, knowing that Sergio feels threatened, is conflicted about allowing Oso to see Alicia. Oso soon learns that Sergio is unemployed, and gambles away what little money he has, amassing a sizeable debt with a thuggish bookie. The Turk, meanwhile, will only pay his debt if Oso agrees to be the getaway driver on one last big job. For her part, Alicia seems fascinated with her father, though, and makes him promise never to go away again. Co-written and directed by Adrián Caetano (Pizza, Birra, Faso), Red Bear was shown at New Directors/New Films in 2003.
[screens Oct. 18 Tuesday 5:30 PM]
Nueve Reinas
"Nine Queens" is the story of two small-time swindlers, Juan (Gastón Pauls) and Marcos (Ricardo Darín), who team up after meeting in a convenience store and become involved in a half million-dollar deal. As the deceptions and duplicity mount, it becomes more and more difficult to figure out who is conning whom, and we begin to ask ourselves, "Who isn't a thief?"
Written and directed by Fabián Bielinsky, this film was nominated for 28 awards and won 21 of them, and is now considered a classic in Argentina's film history.
[screens Oct. 19 Wednesday 3:30 PM, Oct. 21 Friday 5:30 PM]
Paco
The film is named after the protagonist Francisco Black aka "Paco" (Tomás Fonzi), a college student who starts using cocaine paste, a cocaine byproduct known as "paco".
Son of a senator, Francisco falls in love with a cleaning worker. He follows her into Buenos Aires' underworld only to find that his girlfriend has committed suicide after accepting to prostitute herself in exchange for drugs. Seeking revenge, Francisco places a bomb in the drug factory murdering several innocents. As a result of being accused of terrorism charges, his mother uses his influences to try to exculpate him, but she is forced to confine him in a detox clinic, where Francisco finds a bunch of lost souls.
[screens Oct. 19 Wednesday 5:30 PM, Oct. 22 Saturday 5:30 PM]
Everybody Has A Plan
Agustín (Viggo Mortensen), a man desperate to abandon what has gradually become a frustrating existence after living for years in Buenos Aires. After his twin brother Pedro's death, Agustín sets out to begin a new life assuming Pedro's identity and returning to the mysterious Paraná Delta region, which was the childhood home of both brothers. However, shortly after his return, Agustín is involuntarily involved in the dangerous criminal world that his brother had been part of.
[screens Oct. 20 Thursday 3:30 PM, Oct. 23 Sunday 5:30 PM]
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