La Cara del Ángel
Encyclopedia
Angel Face (1998
) is an Argentine
film
, written and directed by Pablo Torre
. The film features Virginia Innocenti, Mario Pasik, Enrique Pinti
, among others.
The director, Pablo Torre, dedicated the film to the approximately 30,000 (the numbers are contested) people who "disappeared" during Argentina's junta's regime in the mid 1970s.
from the mid-seventies to the early eighties, focusing on one particular family. The story is told from the viewpoint of Nicolas, a young boy.
By mistake the mother of the family is killed by right-wing extremists because they believe she had photographed
a civilian protest march and the violent suppression by a military patrol in Buenos Aires. In fact, her twin sister actually took the pictures. She recognized its leader as the father of her nephew and she shows the pictures to her sister.
One day while the sister is out, the man shows up with his political thugs and murders the mother and then hunts for Nicolas who hides inside a large grandfather clock
. Nicolas (Mario Pasik) is soon taken by his aunt to her home in the country, where he attends the local Catholic
school, where most of the children's parents are in the military
.
At the school the fascist bullies and kids who are frightened by them offer a parallel to Argentina's political situation at the time. The boys imitate their parents with dirty tricks toward a boy they call a mixto (born from a marriage of Jews
and Christians) who they regularly beat and torment.
Nicolas develops a friendship with the mixto and confides in him about what happened to his mother.
A few years later, after the mixto has been taken away, Nicolas and the other bullies take part in the Malvinas/Falklands War
. Afterward, Nicolas settles an old, old score.
'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.
According to the Pablo Torre
, the producer/director, the film is loosely based on a story written by Hans Christian Andersen
. In his tale, a wolf wants to eat a family of little lamb
s. One day, the wolf goes into the house and eats the lambs and the smallest lamb hides in a clock
and then escapes. La cara del ángel is adapted by Torre for a larger narrative.
magazine film critic Howard Feinstein, reporting from the Puerto Rico Film Festival, gave the drama a mixed review, writing, "Once again, an Argentine pic attempts to probe the national psyche for clues to what fueled the cruel military junta that ruled from 1976 to 1982. Angel Face is most successful in linking the friendships, fantasies, curiosity and vulgarity of childhood with the workings of the surrounding society. Unfortunately, despite a few fine performances, many of the characters are drawn with a heavy brush, and the direction, photography and editing of this obviously low-budget affair are too uninspired to sustain such a weighty load. Outside of a few Latin American sites, draw will be limited."
in November 1998. It was released wide in Argentina on June 24, 1999.
The film has been screened at various film festivals, including: the Chicago Latino Film Festival
, USA; the San Diego Latino Film Festival, USA; the Puerto Rico Film Festival, and others.
1998 in film
-Events:* February 14 - Sharon Stone marries Phil Bronstein.* Former child star Gary Coleman is charged with assaulting a young female bus driver at a California shopping mall.-Top grossing films:...
) is an Argentine
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, written and directed by Pablo Torre
Pablo Torre
Pablo Torre is an award winning producer, film director, and screenplay writer.He works in the cinema of Argentina.-Filmography:Director* El Amante de las películas mudas aka The Lover of Silent Films* La Cara del ángel...
. The film features Virginia Innocenti, Mario Pasik, Enrique Pinti
Enrique Pinti
Enrique Pinti is a famous Argentine political humorist and actor.As a humorist, he performs stand-up shows with long monologues on Argentine politics and history, speaking at an extremely fast pace and resorting to a mix of common swearwords and elaborate insults to qualify notorious examples of...
, among others.
The director, Pablo Torre, dedicated the film to the approximately 30,000 (the numbers are contested) people who "disappeared" during Argentina's junta's regime in the mid 1970s.
Plot
The story takes place during the period of the ruling military junta in ArgentinaArgentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
from the mid-seventies to the early eighties, focusing on one particular family. The story is told from the viewpoint of Nicolas, a young boy.
By mistake the mother of the family is killed by right-wing extremists because they believe she had photographed
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
a civilian protest march and the violent suppression by a military patrol in Buenos Aires. In fact, her twin sister actually took the pictures. She recognized its leader as the father of her nephew and she shows the pictures to her sister.
One day while the sister is out, the man shows up with his political thugs and murders the mother and then hunts for Nicolas who hides inside a large grandfather clock
Longcase clock
A longcase clock, also tall-case clock, floor clock, or grandfather clock, is a tall, freestanding, weight-driven pendulum clock with the pendulum held inside the tower, or waist of the case. Clocks of this style are commonly 1.8–2.4 metres tall...
. Nicolas (Mario Pasik) is soon taken by his aunt to her home in the country, where he attends the local Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
school, where most of the children's parents are in the military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
.
At the school the fascist bullies and kids who are frightened by them offer a parallel to Argentina's political situation at the time. The boys imitate their parents with dirty tricks toward a boy they call a mixto (born from a marriage of Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
and Christians) who they regularly beat and torment.
Nicolas develops a friendship with the mixto and confides in him about what happened to his mother.
A few years later, after the mixto has been taken away, Nicolas and the other bullies take part in the Malvinas/Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
. Afterward, Nicolas settles an old, old score.
Cast
- Virginia Innocenti
- Mario Pasik as Nicolas
- Enrique PintiEnrique PintiEnrique Pinti is a famous Argentine political humorist and actor.As a humorist, he performs stand-up shows with long monologues on Argentine politics and history, speaking at an extremely fast pace and resorting to a mix of common swearwords and elaborate insults to qualify notorious examples of...
- Victor Moll
- Mariano Marín
- Facundo Garcia
Background
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.
According to the Pablo Torre
Pablo Torre
Pablo Torre is an award winning producer, film director, and screenplay writer.He works in the cinema of Argentina.-Filmography:Director* El Amante de las películas mudas aka The Lover of Silent Films* La Cara del ángel...
, the producer/director, the film is loosely based on a story written by Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen was a Danish author, fairy tale writer, and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Snow Queen," "The Little Mermaid," "Thumbelina," "The Little Match Girl," and "The Ugly Duckling."...
. In his tale, a wolf wants to eat a family of little lamb
Domestic sheep
Sheep are quadrupedal, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Like all ruminants, sheep are members of the order Artiodactyla, the even-toed ungulates. Although the name "sheep" applies to many species in the genus Ovis, in everyday usage it almost always refers to Ovis aries...
s. One day, the wolf goes into the house and eats the lambs and the smallest lamb hides in a clock
Clock
A clock is an instrument used to indicate, keep, and co-ordinate time. The word clock is derived ultimately from the Celtic words clagan and clocca meaning "bell". A silent instrument missing such a mechanism has traditionally been known as a timepiece...
and then escapes. La cara del ángel is adapted by Torre for a larger narrative.
Critical reception
VarietyVariety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
magazine film critic Howard Feinstein, reporting from the Puerto Rico Film Festival, gave the drama a mixed review, writing, "Once again, an Argentine pic attempts to probe the national psyche for clues to what fueled the cruel military junta that ruled from 1976 to 1982. Angel Face is most successful in linking the friendships, fantasies, curiosity and vulgarity of childhood with the workings of the surrounding society. Unfortunately, despite a few fine performances, many of the characters are drawn with a heavy brush, and the direction, photography and editing of this obviously low-budget affair are too uninspired to sustain such a weighty load. Outside of a few Latin American sites, draw will be limited."
Distribution
The film was first presented at the Mar del Plata Film FestivalMar del Plata Film Festival
The Mar del Plata International Film Festival is an international film festival that takes place every November in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina...
in November 1998. It was released wide in Argentina on June 24, 1999.
The film has been screened at various film festivals, including: the Chicago Latino Film Festival
Chicago Latino Film Festival
The Chicago Latino Film Festival is a U.S. film festival, focusing on Latin America and Latinos. Held annually in Chicago since 1985, it is organized by the International Latino Cultural Center and sponsored by a number of national corporations as well as by the local Hispanic and Latino community...
, USA; the San Diego Latino Film Festival, USA; the Puerto Rico Film Festival, and others.
External links
- Pablo Torre interview at the Chicago Latino Film FestivalChicago Latino Film FestivalThe Chicago Latino Film Festival is a U.S. film festival, focusing on Latin America and Latinos. Held annually in Chicago since 1985, it is organized by the International Latino Cultural Center and sponsored by a number of national corporations as well as by the local Hispanic and Latino community...
- La cara del ángel at the 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...