Garage Olimpo
Encyclopedia
Olympic Garage (1999) is an Argentine
drama film
, directed by Marco Bechis
and written by Bechis and Lara Fremder.
The film was produced by Daniel Burman
and Diego Dubcovsky
(both from Argentina), Amedeo Pagani (Italy), and Eric Heumann (France).
The picture is about a young politically active Argentine woman who is kidnapped by the military during Argentina's Dirty War
in the late 1970s. She is taken to a torture center called Garage Olimpo in the middle of Buenos Aires.
The film tells of Maria (Antonella Costa
), a political activist in an Argentine organization that is fighting the oppressive military dictatorship during the Dirty War
.
She also teaches reading and writing in the suburbs of Buenos Aires
in a blighted area.
She too lives in a decrepit rooming house with her mother Diane (Dominique Sanda
), who rents out some rooms. One of the lodgers is a young man named Felix (Carlos Echevarría
), who's in love with Maria, and rather shy.
Felix seems to have come from nowhere and is supposed to work as a watchman in a garage. One morning, Maria is kidnapped by a military squad in civilian clothes in front of her mother and is taken to the garage Olimpo, one of the many well-known torture places in the middle of Buenos Aires, which operate to the general indifference of the local citizens.
As soon as Maria is captured the film's mood becomes uncomfortable and the atmosphere is minimalist.
Tigre, who's the head of the center (Enrique Piñeyro
), appoints Felix, their best torturer, to make Maria talk.
Yet, Felix is overcome by his feelings for Maria, and Maria is determined to exploit the situation with Felix for her survival.
's reactionary military junta assumed power on March 24, 1976. During the junta's rule: the parliament was suspended, unions, political parties and provincial governments were banned, and in what became known as the Dirty War
between 9,000 and 30,000 people deemed left-wing "subversives" disappeared from society.
As the country celebrated its win of the World Cup, many political activists were tortured in Buenos Aires and then later taken on "death flights." Victims were drugged and then dropped alive into the Atlantic Ocean from military aircraft.
Chile
an born director Marco Bechis was a victim of the country's military regime and was forced to leave Argentina in 1977, at the age of 20, for political reasons.
on May 16 in the Un Certain Regard
section. It opened wide in Argentina on September 2, 1999.
The film was screened at various film festivals, including: the Toronto Film Festival, Canada
; the Huelva Latin American Film Festival, Spain
; the Norwegian International Film Festival, Norway
; the Human Rights Watch Film Festival, New York
; the Amnesty International Film Festival, Netherlands
; and others.
Stephen Holden, film critic for The New York Times
, wrote the film is "notable on the international front...a not-for-the-squeamish film from Argentina about an opponent of the military dictatorship who is tortured in a garage in the heart of Buenos Aires."
Critic Jonathan Hollander liked the directorial lead of Marco Bechis, and wrote, "Garage Olimpo is the kind of valuable cultural product that symbolises political regeneration...himself a victim of the country's regime – he was forced to leave Argentina in 1977, at the age of 20, for political reasons – director Marco Bechis has the necessary moral authority to make this film."
Michael Thomson, writing for the BBC
, lauded the film and the passion of director Marco Bechis, and wrote, "It is director Marco Bechis' softly-softly approach which fills each frame with real power and leaves you in no doubt as to his commitment and passion. It is indeed no surprise to learn that this Italian-Chilean was himself snatched by the military in Buenos Aires and tortured. Yet, despite his admirable insistence on moving us with the truth (helped by his grainy camera work), Bechis can also tell a tale and he gradually incorporates a race-against-time element. Will Maria escape, especially when she is taken out on the town by her captor? Let's just say that the answer would be alien to Hollywood."
Nominations
Cinema of Argentina
The cinema of Argentina has a tradition dating back to the late nineteenth century, and continues to play a role in the culture of Argentina....
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
, directed by Marco Bechis
Marco Bechis
Marco Bechis is a Chilean-Italian film screenwriter and director. His film Garage Olimpo was screened at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard section.-Selected filmography:* Alambrado...
and written by Bechis and Lara Fremder.
The film was produced by Daniel Burman
Daniel Burman
Daniel Burman is a film director, screenplay writer, and producer.According to film critic Joel Poblete, who writes for Mabuse, a cinema magazine, Daniel Burman is one of the members of the so-called "New Argentina Cinema" which began c...
and Diego Dubcovsky
Diego Dubcovsky
Diego Dubcovsky is an Argentine film producer, production manager, and production designer.He works in the cinema of Argentina....
(both from Argentina), Amedeo Pagani (Italy), and Eric Heumann (France).
The picture is about a young politically active Argentine woman who is kidnapped by the military during Argentina's Dirty War
Dirty War
The Dirty War was a period of state-sponsored violence in Argentina from 1976 until 1983. Victims of the violence included several thousand left-wing activists, including trade unionists, students, journalists, Marxists, Peronist guerrillas and alleged sympathizers, either proved or suspected...
in the late 1970s. She is taken to a torture center called Garage Olimpo in the middle of Buenos Aires.
Plot
Antonella Costa
Antonella Costa is a film and television actress.She works in different countries including the cinema of Argentina.-Filmography:* Garage Olimpo aka Garage Olimpo* Alma mía...
), a political activist in an Argentine organization that is fighting the oppressive military dictatorship during the Dirty War
Dirty War
The Dirty War was a period of state-sponsored violence in Argentina from 1976 until 1983. Victims of the violence included several thousand left-wing activists, including trade unionists, students, journalists, Marxists, Peronist guerrillas and alleged sympathizers, either proved or suspected...
.
She also teaches reading and writing in the suburbs of Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
in a blighted area.
She too lives in a decrepit rooming house with her mother Diane (Dominique Sanda
Dominique Sanda
Dominique Sanda is a French actress and former fashion model.Sanda was born as Dominique Marie-Françoise Renée Varaigne in Paris to Lucienne and Gérard Varaigne...
), who rents out some rooms. One of the lodgers is a young man named Felix (Carlos Echevarría
Carlos Echevarría
Carlos Echevarría is a film and television actor, producer, and writer.He works in the cinema of Argentina.-Filmography:* Garage Olimpo * Vamos ganando * Los Inquilinos del infierno * Vacaciones día uno...
), who's in love with Maria, and rather shy.
Felix seems to have come from nowhere and is supposed to work as a watchman in a garage. One morning, Maria is kidnapped by a military squad in civilian clothes in front of her mother and is taken to the garage Olimpo, one of the many well-known torture places in the middle of Buenos Aires, which operate to the general indifference of the local citizens.
As soon as Maria is captured the film's mood becomes uncomfortable and the atmosphere is minimalist.
Tigre, who's the head of the center (Enrique Piñeyro
Enrique Piñeyro (actor)
Enrique Piñeyro is a pilot turned film actor, producer, crash analyst, aeronautical physician, film director, and screenplay writer, working partly in Argentina. Piñeyro and Verónica Cura own Aqua Films, a film production company in Argentina.- Biography :Piñeyro was born in Genoa, Italy, 1956...
), appoints Felix, their best torturer, to make Maria talk.
Yet, Felix is overcome by his feelings for Maria, and Maria is determined to exploit the situation with Felix for her survival.
Cast
- Antonella CostaAntonella CostaAntonella Costa is a film and television actress.She works in different countries including the cinema of Argentina.-Filmography:* Garage Olimpo aka Garage Olimpo* Alma mía...
as Maria - Carlos EchevarríaCarlos EchevarríaCarlos Echevarría is a film and television actor, producer, and writer.He works in the cinema of Argentina.-Filmography:* Garage Olimpo * Vamos ganando * Los Inquilinos del infierno * Vacaciones día uno...
as Felix - Enrique PiñeyroEnrique Piñeyro (actor)Enrique Piñeyro is a pilot turned film actor, producer, crash analyst, aeronautical physician, film director, and screenplay writer, working partly in Argentina. Piñeyro and Verónica Cura own Aqua Films, a film production company in Argentina.- Biography :Piñeyro was born in Genoa, Italy, 1956...
as Tigre - Pablo Razuk as Tex
- Chiara CaselliChiara CaselliChiara Caselli is an Italian actress. In 1994, Caselli won the Nastro d'Argento Best Actress award as well as the David di Donatello for Best Actress award...
as Ana - Dominique SandaDominique SandaDominique Sanda is a French actress and former fashion model.Sanda was born as Dominique Marie-Françoise Renée Varaigne in Paris to Lucienne and Gérard Varaigne...
as Diane - Paola Bechis as Gloria
- Adrián Fondari as Rubio
- Marcelo Chaparro as Turco
- Miguel Oliveira as Nene
- Ruy Krieger as Francisco
- Marcos Montes as Víbora
Production
The film is based on the real political events that took place in Argentina after Jorge Rafael VidelaJorge Rafael Videla
Jorge Rafael Videla Redondo is a former senior commander in the Argentine Army who was the de facto President of Argentina from 1976 to 1981. He came to power in a coup d'état that deposed Isabel Martínez de Perón...
's reactionary military junta assumed power on March 24, 1976. During the junta's rule: the parliament was suspended, unions, political parties and provincial governments were banned, and in what became known as the Dirty War
Dirty War
The Dirty War was a period of state-sponsored violence in Argentina from 1976 until 1983. Victims of the violence included several thousand left-wing activists, including trade unionists, students, journalists, Marxists, Peronist guerrillas and alleged sympathizers, either proved or suspected...
between 9,000 and 30,000 people deemed left-wing "subversives" disappeared from society.
As the country celebrated its win of the World Cup, many political activists were tortured in Buenos Aires and then later taken on "death flights." Victims were drugged and then dropped alive into the Atlantic Ocean from military aircraft.
Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an born director Marco Bechis was a victim of the country's military regime and was forced to leave Argentina in 1977, at the age of 20, for political reasons.
Distribution
The film was first presented at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival1999 Cannes Film Festival
The 52nd Cannes Film Festival was held on May 12-23, 1999. The Palme d'Or went to the French-Belgian film Rosetta by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne.-Jury:* David Cronenberg * André Téchiné * Barbara Hendricks...
on May 16 in the Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's Official Selection. It is run at the Salle Debussy, parallel to the competition for the Palme d'Or.This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob...
section. It opened wide in Argentina on September 2, 1999.
The film was screened at various film festivals, including: the Toronto Film Festival, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
; the Huelva Latin American Film Festival, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
; the Norwegian International Film Festival, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
; the Human Rights Watch Film Festival, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
; the Amnesty International Film Festival, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
; and others.
Critical response
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, wrote the film is "notable on the international front...a not-for-the-squeamish film from Argentina about an opponent of the military dictatorship who is tortured in a garage in the heart of Buenos Aires."
Critic Jonathan Hollander liked the directorial lead of Marco Bechis, and wrote, "Garage Olimpo is the kind of valuable cultural product that symbolises political regeneration...himself a victim of the country's regime – he was forced to leave Argentina in 1977, at the age of 20, for political reasons – director Marco Bechis has the necessary moral authority to make this film."
Michael Thomson, writing for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, lauded the film and the passion of director Marco Bechis, and wrote, "It is director Marco Bechis' softly-softly approach which fills each frame with real power and leaves you in no doubt as to his commitment and passion. It is indeed no surprise to learn that this Italian-Chilean was himself snatched by the military in Buenos Aires and tortured. Yet, despite his admirable insistence on moving us with the truth (helped by his grainy camera work), Bechis can also tell a tale and he gradually incorporates a race-against-time element. Will Maria escape, especially when she is taken out on the town by her captor? Let's just say that the answer would be alien to Hollywood."
Awards
Wins- Havana Film FestivalHavana Film FestivalThe Havana Film Festival is a Cuban festival that focuses on the promotion of Spanish-language filmmakers. It is also known in Spanish as Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano de La Habana, and in English as Festival of New Latinamerican Cinema of La Havana.The festival takes place...
: Cuban Critics Award; Glauber Rocha Award; Grand Coral – First Prize; Martin Luther King Memorial Center Award; OCIC Award; all for Marco Bechis; Memoria Documentary Award, David Blaustein 1999. - Thessaloniki Film Festival: FIPRESCIFIPRESCIThe International Federation of Film Critics is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the world for "the promotion and development of film culture and for the safeguarding of professional interests." It was founded in June 1930 in...
Prize International Competition – For the conviction and subtlety with which it conveys the mechanisms of terror both political and psychological; Silver Alexander; both for Marco Bechis; 1999. - Huelva Latin American Film Festival: Golden Colon, Marco Bechis; 1999.
- Lleida Latin-American Film FestivalLleida Latin-American Film FestivalThe Lleida Latin-American Film Festival is a cinema festival that takes place in Lleida, Spain awarding Latin American films. It is organised by the Latin American Centre of Lleida and is sponsored by the city council , the University of Lleida and La Caixa...
: ICCI Screenplay Award, Marco Bechis and Lara Fremder; 2000. - Lucas – International Festival of Films for Children and Young People: C.I.F.E.J. Award – Special Mention; Lucas Youth Section; Marco Bechis; 2000.
- Argentine Film Critics Association Awards: Best Director, Marco Bechis; Best Editing, Jacopo Quadri; 2000.
- Cartagena Film FestivalCartagena Film FestivalThe Cartagena Film Festival, or Festival Internacional de Cine y T.V. de Cartagena de Indias. is a Colombian film festival which focuses on the promotion of Colombian television programs, Latin American films, and videos...
: Golden India Catalina, Best Film, Marco Bechis; 2000. - David di Donatello Awards, Italy: David, Best Producer, Amedeo Pagani; 2000.
- Santa Barbara International Film FestivalSanta Barbara International Film FestivalThe Santa Barbara International Film Festival is a film festival and non-profit organization, established in 1985, that showcases independent American and international films. The SBIFF line-up includes 20 world premieres and 11 U.S. premieres, with newly expanded 11-day festival...
: Phoenix Prize, Marco Bechis; 2000.
Nominations
- Thessaloniki Film Festival: Golden Alexander, Marco Bechis; 1999.
- Argentine Film Critics Association Awards: Silver Condor, Best Actress, Antonella Costa; Best Art Direction/Production Design, Rómulo Abad; Best Cinematography, Ramiro Civita; Best Film; Best New Actress, Antonella Costa; Best Original Screenplay, Marco Bechis and Lara Fremder; 2000.
- Ariel Awards, Mexico: Silver Ariel, Best Latin-American Film, Marco Bechis, Argentina; 2001.
- David di Donatello Awards: David, Best Director, Marco Bechis; Best Editing, Jacopo Quadri; Best Film; Best Screenplay, Marco Bechis and Lara Fremder; 2000.
- Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists: Silver Ribbon, Best Director, Marco Bechis; Best Editing, Jacopo Quadri; Best Original Story, Marco Bechis and Lara Fremder; Best Producer, Amedeo Pagani; 2000.
External links
- Garage Olimpo at cinenacional.comCinenacional.comCinenacional.com is a web portal and web-based database about Argentine cinema.The site provides a vast array of information, including: films, television programs, directors, actors, cinematographers, film editors, production designers, and other production professions in Argentina...
- Garage Olimpo film
- Garage Olimpo film review at Cineismo by Guillermo Ravaschino
- Garage Olimpo film clip at You Tube