The Official Story
Yesterday we watched a clip from Michel Chanan’s New Cinema in Latin America that explored the development of the “New Latin American Cinema”, an approach to film making that seeks strategies to “lift the veil of neocolonialism” that, also according to the film by Fernando Solanas, blinds Latin American audiences in particular and its society in general. Chanan’s documentary places the origins of this vision in Italian neorealism, the style of film making that developed in that country after World War II to portray the social reality of that nation by focusing on the difficulties faced by the working class. Chanan shows how that style was appropriated for documentary purposes in 1950s Argentina by Fernando Birri and the members of the Santa Fe Documentary School (we saw a fragment of his documentary Tire Dié, about the children who lived by the train tracks. La hora de los hornos, which we also watched yesterday, fits the style of what some critics call the “survey documentary” initiated by Birri, as do other attempts to use neorealist strategies to represent the social reality of the Continent --in Chanan's film we meet Cuban filmmaker Julio García Espinosa, who muses about his attempts at explaining Italian neorealism to a policeman who arrests him and his crew when they were trying to film a neorealist documentary, El Megano, in 1950s Cuba.) Interviewed by Chanan, Octavio Getino states that neorealism is a popular strategy for Latin American filmmakers because its goals are to represent “the oppressed and the humiliated”, and “ours is the history of the oppressed and the humiliated”.
Falicov explores towards the end of her first chapter how, upon Peron´s return to power in 1973 there was a brief period when Peronist filmmakers such as Solanas, Getino, and Raymundo Glayzer, among others, produced some political films that reflected their revolutionary ideology, and how, after Peróns death in 1974, the political situation in Argentina deteriorated, leading to the “Dirty War” and the military coup that, in 1976, would plunge the country into its most bloody political period in ages. The political repression of the dictatorship resulted in tens of thousands of disappeared (people –union leaders, students, artists, intellectuals,many innocent of any crime—arrested, tortured, and executed by the military), and hundreds of thousands of exiled.
The neorealist approach, both theoretically and stylistically, is also a direct response –as Solanas and Getino mention in their text-- to the aesthetics that dominated mainstream Argentine cinema at the time, an auteur style that received great international acclaim and, in its aesthetic austerity and bleak beauty shows the influence of the French and Italian new wave. Films like Crónica de un niño solo (Chronicle of a Lonely Child), directed in 1965 by Leonardo Favio and dedicated to Leopoldo Torres Nilsson, who was considered the leading representative of a style in Argentine film that reproduced the visual and technical innovations developed in European film. Throughout the 1960s and into the 1970s Torres Nilssonn was considered by international critics as the most important filmmaker in Argentina.
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| Norma Aleandro won the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival for her role as Alicia. Analia Castro played little Gaby. |
We can approach La historia oficial (The Official Story) (Luis Puenzo, 1985) as a film that tries to explore the social and human costs of that dictatorship through the experiences of an upper-middle class family (Alicia, Roberto, and their adopted daughter, Gaby) forced to confront and come to terms with the consequences of their actions during that dark time in Argentine history. We talked about the film as a form of catharsis that could appease Argentine audiences who had gone on with their lives during the dictatorship despite widespread information about the atrocities committed by the military junta, but also as a means to show international audiences that the country acknowledged and was reacting to these crimes.
With the help of her rebellious, nonconforming students, Alicia –played by Norma Aleandro, who won the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival for her role—is a history teacher who seems to be emerging from Wonderland into her own country as she is confronted with increasingly heartbreaking aspects of a reality that she seems to have chosen to ignore, from the true reasons of the move of her friend Ana –who was exiled after her partner was disappeared and she was tortured and raped by the military—to the particulars of her husband´s mysterious job, and the true origins of her adoptive daughter. “The country went down the drain. Things only went well for sons of bitches, thieves, accomplices, and my older son”, says Roberto´s father, an old Spanish anarchist whose business has failed during the financial difficulties of the time.
Puenzo
takes full advantage of many of the oldest dramatic tools of the filmic trade
to warm his audience to the transformation of Alicia, and uses her as an
allegory of the horrible choices Argentineans face in order to overcome their
immediate past. From the discourses
on history Alicia offers her class to the song about memory and forgetting that
Gaby sings throughout the film, from the mock “home invasion” staged by the
children during Gaby´s birthday party to the ominous images of the Mothers of
Plaza de Mayo marching to demand the return of their disappeared children, from
the nonchalant dismissal of the associate of Roberto´s early in the film, to
Roberto´s increasingly violent desperation and loss of control as he becomes
aware that the “boat is sinking”, Puenzo tries to transmit to his audience the
magnitude of the price Argentines will have to pay for their redemption.
An element that stood out to me in the film was the scene when the entire family was at a picnic at the grandparent’s house. This scene provides the tension between socio-economic classes in a very condensed and straightforward way. If this entire movie is about the middle class’s catharsis, this situation certainly helps that cause. The grandfather is rambling on about the wealthy that have no morals and exploit everyone around them, then destroy anyone who gets in their way. As they sit down for their meal, Roberto becomes more and more frustrated, finally forcing his brother to ask the kids to go play. Their father continues to criticize Roberto, who has his head in the clouds about under the table deals and torture that his company seems to endorse in the name of money. It becomes very clear that Roberto’s values are very different than that of his family’s, referring to them as disasters, although surrounded by love and family. Roberto seems to think that he is successful with his wealth, but will learn the lesson later that losing your family is worse than losing your money. As the argument progresses, what struck me the most was how the scene closes out, in a picture that seems to capture the historical context. Roberto and Alicia, who is middle class, have their backs to the family, who are working class. The grandmother, grandfather, and brother are all looking to Roberto or Alicia, almost asking for help.
ReplyDeleteThe book discusses how Antín, the director of the INC, wanted to make the Argentine film industry a public relations mechanism for the state, both domestically and abroad. He wanted to tell the story of true Argentina without censorship, and through that, a sort of national reconciliation, coming to terms with the atrocities committed. The Official Story does just that, telling a story all too common for many adopted children. Although heartbreaking and intense, this movie both draws in the international interest while also healing a nation.
Throughout the film I took special note of the very controversial content which was portrayed and reveals an important aspect of Argentine history. Specifically it reveals the transition from a brutal, military dictatorship towards a democracy. This led to dramatic changes in how films were made in Argentina and what the subject matter was. Very controversial topics were portrayed in the film including domestic violence between Alicia and her husband and protests. This subject matter would not have been approved during the military regime. During the military dictatorship films were closely monitored and subject matter was controlled which prevented filmmakers from making films and led many to flee the country. After the Dirty Wars and the fall of the dictatorship the government began giving funds to support films and films with social scenes could once again be shown and discussed. These new films sought to promote a positive image of democracy as apposed to images of the dictatorship. “The Official Story” was a good example of this transition in filmmaking. It revolved around a social topic, the ambivalence of the middle class and the consequences to this blindness and in doing so it brought the issue to the forefront of public thought. Alicia had been blinded to the true origins of her adopted daughter just as the middle class was often blinded to the horrifying events taking part as a result of the dictatorship. Another aspect of the film that was very interesting and highlighted the transition in filmmaking taking part during this time is the social status of the subjects. The subjects were all of the middle class and what the book termed as “white” subjects versus films from earlier years, which focused on darker skinned individuals of lower or working class. The main characters in the film were very light skinned, moderately well off individuals. This shows how during this period the film industry transitioned in subject matter. It was now catered towards a middle class viewership versus a domestic working class audience as it previously had been. With this transition filmmakers put more focus on creating films that could be applicable and positively intercepted on an international market. They did this by focusing on the struggles of the middle class and denouncing the dictatorship, which could be relatable to larger audiences. Moreover, after the fall of the dictatorship Argentine films could once again be shown at many film festivals and locations internationally, which had previously been restricted for political reasons. With the fall of the dictatorship “The Official Story” was able to gain international recognition and even an Academy Award. The horrifying scene in the movie where Alicia’s husband physically abuses her was also particularly interesting to me. The text commented on how it was an allegory for the state, specifically the military dictatorship committing violence towards the citizens. This was a great allegory and also a great example of how films shifted in subject matter and addressed more controversial, social topics. Her husband symbolized the state that inflicted violence against innocent citizens often for no reason just as he abuses his wife for no justifiable reason. This allegory and the film in totality symbolize the desire of Argentina to discredit the former military dictatorship and show support for the new transitional, democratic government. It is a story of redemption not only for Alicia, but also for Argentina and its film market as a whole.
ReplyDeleteToday we watched a film directed by Luis Puenzo titled The Official Story (1985) that was about a history teacher that is becoming aware about what is going around her in her country. Previously unaware of the circumstances that surround her, Alicia develops a mindful disposition after some students, another teacher (Benitez) and her best friend (Ana) are direct about how people are disappearing and children are given away. She then begins to come to terms about the legitimacy of her own child. She searches for answers about what really happened.
ReplyDeleteThere are several things about the film that caught my interest and one of the scenes, in particular, was the family picnic. The entire conversation was questioning morals and what it means to get ahead with the new system of government. When the grandfather was walking with the children he explained that no one should be ashamed to be poor, nor is it an honor to be rich. Then a child commented that it was better to be rich though. The grandfather retaliated with the fact that it depends on what you had to do and how you became rich. The whole country is going to shit with the exception of those who steal. This scene showed how each generation had a different idea of what it meant to be successful. Roberto became offended that his accomplishments were not acknowledged. He felt like he did what he had to do to provide for his family and be considered a winner. I found it ironic that they were both saying the same thing for different reasons. They both wanted the other to look around and see what is really going on. Roberto thought his father was the one with his head in the clouds when really, it was the other way around.
Falicov explains each aspect of the melodrama in The Cinematic Tango. From a sociological perspective, the film relates to the middle class while still holding on to the Argentina culture. Because this film was meant to be shown internationally, it does not intentionally depict the military or the middle class as bad people and instead provides another perspective on the events that occurred in Argentina after the Dirty War. There was a desire to raise awareness about the Dirty War while also portraying Argentina in a positive manner and still appealing to foreign countries.
This film made me empathize with the struggles and guilt of the middle class. I began to question how unaware the people of the middle class actually were. There were a few instances where Alicia did not want to hear the truth and seemed threatened by it. When her friend Ana was unveiling her soul, Alicia did not want to hear it. She became offended and asked her why she told her that story. Even though Alicia was searching for the grandmother of her child (Sara), she drove away when she saw her standing in front of the school waiting for her. This makes me think that the middle class feels guilty because they knew that they did something awful.
La historia official (1985) by Luis Puenzo is a very eye opening and emotionally evoking film. I find the character of Alicia to be particularly fascinating. In the beginning of the film, Alicia appears quite reserved and is quite a disciplinarian in the classroom where she teaches history to male high school students. She rarely questions the environment around her and her husband Roberto runs the show. After hearing her friend Ana describe her abduction, torture, and rape by the military, Alicia begins to question the origins of her adopted daughter, Gaby. She finds out that those that went against the military suddenly disappeared and their children were given to rich families that did not ask questions. Alicia becomes more and more desperate for knowledge surrounding this issue and Gaby’s biological parents. She is given little to no answers from the hospital, a pastor, and her own husband. Roberto makes remarks that Alicia is very unaware of her surroundings, and we see her transform into an individual that begins to question. It is interesting to note that initially in the film, Alicia portrays herself as a strict no-nonsense professor and towards the end of the film, she praises one of her most rebellious students for his interest in history even though he has not made proper references to his sources for a paper he has written. She literally lets her hair down and continues her quest for answers. The part of the film that strikes me is the end. After bringing home Sara, the likely biological grandmother of Gaby, Roberto becomes very angry and forces Sara to leave. He later strikes Alicia and smashes her fingers in the door. Alicia embraces him shortly after this incident and then presumably leaves him, leaving her keys dangling in the lock from the inside. The camera then goes to Gaby, alone and rocking in a rocking chair, singing a song about a country she does not remember and the fear that comes with that. Alicia pays dearly for her indifference towards the circumstances of the adoption of Sara and although neither Alicia nor Roberto go to jail for their actions, they pay dearly. This is an interesting commentary on class division, a common characteristic of Argentine film. The biological parents of Gaby were very poor though apparently happily married. They were taken and never heard of again, though there is a reference during the march of the abuelas in the plaza that suggests that Gaby was born in captivity. Alicia and Roberto are punished in a different way as is illustrated in the end of the film. Ana is also a part of the middle class and though she is captured by the military for involvement with her ex boyfriend (a revolutionary type) she is eventually released and lives to tell the story.
ReplyDeleteLa historia oficial (1985) by Puenzo surprisingly captured my attention more than I had expected it to. It does an amazing job of showing what the problems of that time period were through symbolism throughout the movie. One symbol that stood out to me the most was Alicia herself. She not only represented el pecado de omisión that so many people carried at that time. For example, she blindly took Gaby in as her own daughter without truly knowing where she came from. In her classroom, Alicia at first tells her students that whatever was not written in the textbooks, were not to be used in papers.
ReplyDeleteInterestingly enough, the biggest symbol that stood out to me the most was the change in Alicia’s hairstyle. For about the first half of the film, Alicia always wore her hair up. This was the stage of her life where she practically listened and believed everything she was told (like Roberto and the other professor had told her). She never really questioned anything when her hair was styled this way. When she actually does begin to realize that she needs to question her husband, where Gaby came from, etc. she begins to wear her hair down. When she first changed her hairstyle in the movie, I knew at that moment that her mentality had changed and she was going to start acting “rebellious” by her standards.
Looking into this aspect even further, the change in Alicia’s hairstyle not only represents the change in her mentality, but it also represents the change in Argentina’s mentality as well. Through Argentina’s transition, they it can be said that towards the beginning (like the beginning of the movie), the people still believed in some of the tactics of the military dictatorships that had been ruling. For example, silencing people who they did not agree with (Alicia does this in her classroom when the students post the newspapers all over the chalkboard). When Alicia’s hairstyle is down, she is open to learn more and adapt just like Argentina as well. The stolen children were actually being given back to their biological families. Whether or not that damaged the children mentally is another entity of its own that I will not delve into. The students of Alicia’s classroom did a good job aiding to her symbolism of change because youth often times represents the future, and if the future has the tendency to question things and search for justice, then the students may as well be a precursor for how the mentality of Argentina would look in the future.
Great observation AJ! I would never have noticed or come to your conclusion about Alicia’s hairstyle but I agree with you.
DeleteThe film “The Official Story” by Luis Puenzo presented many important insights on the conflicting difference between social classes. Through dialogue, characters, and authority the film exposed many challenges that the country faced. The most intriguing part of the film was the protagonist (Alicia’s) role in the film. Throughout the film the audience was able to capture her growth and importance of her character. Alicia was in a difficult position, as a history teacher she had boundaries and guidelines to follow. However, throughout the video her character quickly began to change. An important aspect of her character was her interaction with her students. The student’s proclamations against the political system that implemented a small change in how she viewed things. Furthermore, her friend’s tragic story escalated Alicia’s doubt on how she came in hands with her adopted daughter. Her student’s rebellion and her friend’s story both played an important element on the development of the story.
ReplyDeleteThe film, "The Official Story" is a direct representation of the cultural and political changes taking place in Argentina in the 1980's. In the 80's Argentina was transitioning to a Democratic Government after years of military control. During that time there came the idea that the middle class had betrayed the working class while under military control and because of this idea, reconciliation was sought out. One of the atrocities that took place under military control was the murder of working class pregnant women after giving birth. The new born babies were then given to families unable to conceive with a "don't ask" policy. The film watched in class directly repreresents this struggle in Argentine culture. Roberto represents the old view of the Argentine middle class. He constantly refuses to accept or discuss the fact that his daughter is one of the new borns taken away from one of the murdered women of the working class. He refuses to reconcile with what he has done. Anna and the high school class represent the working class during the military government. They blame the middle class for their plight and constantly seek and fight for reconciliation of their losses. Alicia is the struggle between these two ideologies. In the beginning of the film, Alicia is comfortably oblivious to what has occurred to the working class. It isn't until her friend Anna tells her story about torture and the disappearance of babies that Alicia's eyes are opened. She begins to realize her own situation and that she has inadvertently taken part in the disappearance of working class babies. Alicia then begins to search for her daughter's real family and confronts her husband Roberto about what she has found. Her struggles through out the film between her old views and her new represents the struggle faced by the population of Argentina in this time period.
ReplyDeleteLa Historia Oficial (1985) is the heart wrenching story of how a middle class mother comes to realize the true origins of her adopted daughter. The movie takes place after the fall of the dictatorship in Argentina, where thousands of people mysteriously disappeared. These disappearances were due to controlling government. The government would kidnap pregnant young women as well and then give the baby away, as such was the case for Alicia and Roberto. The main theme of this subject challenges the common acceptance of what is fact and what is not among society today. As Falicov states, there was a “gap between local positioning of the individual subject and totality of class relations he or she is situated in” (67). Alicia is in the tough spot of being in the middle class and then being challenged as an individual to contradict the common accepted thinking. One is able to see the transformation as she begins to stumble upon the truth throughout the movie. In the beginning she does not smile often and appears to be stoic with her hair tied up in a tight bun atop her head. When she begins to find her own answers throughout the movie she lets her hair down and lets herself laugh more. Alicia is told throughout the movie not to ask silly questions as to where the mother of her daughter is. This is especially apparent when Alicia goes to confession and asks advice from the priest. The priest knows the truth, yet refuses to tell her and instead claims she is ungrateful for the gift that God has granted to her. The middle-class is ignorant and yet when asks questions about the truth is told to not question but accept the truth.
ReplyDeleteAs a history professor, Alicia teachers her students that their facts must come from credible sources, and even asks a student to step outside when he shouts “history is written by assassins!” This sounds like a radical statement, yet in Alicia’s case turns out to be true. The history of her daughter was written by assassins. The truth she has been told has come from those who killed Gaby’s parents. The movie portrays the lower class as the main victims of this violence and middle class as those who are now dealing with the consequences when they turned a blind eye toward the true history of Argentina. In the final scene, we can see Gaby in the rocking chair waiting for her parents, as Alicia once waited for hers. This leaves the question, is everything full circle? Is history just meant to repeat itself? In the end, the middle class also paid for what once they chose to be ignorant towards the violence of the lower class. Alicia chooses to pursue the path of virtue despite the difference between classes and those that urge her not to question the story that is written.
Today the class watched The Official Story first released in 1985 and produced by Luis Puenzo. It won many film festival awards including the 1986 Academy Award for Foreign Language Film and was well received by audiences in Europe, United States and Argentina. At a time when dictatorship and the military misusing power silenced film makers through censorship until 1982, the transition from what was known as The Dirty War to democracy under Alfonsin’s administration led to film striving to promote democracy, recent history, reveal the class warfare prevalent in the middle class and present Argentina in an optimistic light.
ReplyDeleteThe Official Story shows the middle-class perspective to appeal to a more international audience and be more relatable to these audiences with a disposable income. Alicia, a modest history teacher for high school boys, is the main character who ignores the obvious economic hardships around her as well as the disappearances and murders carried out by the military posted in newspaper clippings on her chalkboard by her students. She is upper middle class and has an adopted daughter Gaby who is a child of disappeared parents who were accused of being subversives. Gaby’s Grandmother Sara, working class and demonstrates against the junta with the Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo weekly as well as facing economic hardship and dealing with the disappearances or possible murdering of her son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter. In the scene with Alicia and Sara meeting at a café to discuss matters of the consequences of the horrific dictatorship with the usual noise of talking, traffic and the urban setting adds to the notion of this being a common meeting place for conversations such as this. The film takes turns switching views of Alicia acting stiff then to Sara showing the pictures of her family reminiscing about her family. The division between the two classes is clear not only in the story, but it also reflects all of Argentina’s distance between the two. Alicia seems to not care of this woman’s troubles until it appears to concern her losing her daughter who looks like the granddaughter in Sara’s photos. This lack of compassion for the working class demonstrates the broken culture brought by the constant dictatorships in Argentina’s past that without a doubt some people handled by shutting out what they did not want to believe, distracting themselves, keeping themselves busy, and denying what they were witnessing. Though both women cry, a toughness is seen in Sara telling Alicia there is no use in crying. We see through this scene at the café how Argentina is just now accepting the recent history and beginning to be faced with tough decisions of how to do what is right now that the truth is uncovered.
The film “The Official Story” directed by Luis Puenzo won an Oscar and an Academy Award for best foreign film in 1986 for its realistic telling of an upper middle class couple living in Buenos Aires with a child that was illegally adopted. As a school teacher married to a wealthy business man, Alicia wasn’t aware of the state sponsored terrorism that happened around her during the time of her child’s adoption. During the torture and murder of those opposed to the military dictatorship, many pregnant women were also imprisoned until they had their babies and then killed. These orphaned children were then given to upper middle class families who agreed to turn a blind eye to the circumstances surrounding the adoption. After the military dictatorship was overthrown the country was launched into a transition period where a group of grandmothers began to protest, wanting to know what had happened to their loved ones and the children of the daughters that had disappeared. Like most of the upper middle class during this time, Alicia continued to turn a blind eye to the suffering around her until her friend Ana returns after being away for 7 years. Ana, having been imprisoned and tortured before she fled the country, tells Alicia her story. After a short time of denial, Alicia begins to realize that not only has she been completely oblivious but that her own daughter could be one of the children illegally adopted. She does the right thing by asking questions and confronting her husband, the one who adopted the child illegally, and is met with the harsh reality of the callous person her husband had become.
ReplyDeleteFor me the most disturbing part of “The Official Story” is that it ends with unanswered questions…..did Alicia leave her husband? Did the child stay with Alicia or go to her grandmother? How does the future look for the child? Did she have emotional repercussions of being orphaned, adopted, and then adopted again?
Luis Puenzo directed La historia oficial in a way that highlights the glaring disparities existent between classes in Argentina. Filmmakers of this period had the lofty task of rectifying the global legitimacy of Argentina following the gradual purge of military dictatorships. A resurgence of democracy had a significant impact on the cinematic scene Tamara Falicov emphasized the political affiliation that dominated film. According to Falicov, “…many believed that the administration [of Alfonsín] privileged the middle class over the working class.” (53) Likewise Solanas and Getino responded to this idea by pointing out that “[c]ulture, art, science, and cinema always respond to conflicting class interests.” (35) The film was created to reveal the current situation of Argentina as the protagonist acknowledges the societal disparities. This notable situation is reflected in La historia oficial.
ReplyDeleteAs an aspiring teacher, I gravitate towards how teachers are portrayed in film and media. I was invested in Alicia’s character since she entered the classroom, which makes her a particularly poignant part of the film from my perspective. In the beginning of the film she is conservative, sheltered, and complacent. The film exposes the internal and external battle between complacency and reality. As a teacher, she is strict and describes her students as “insolent.” Their definitive role of symbolizing reality served as the impetus for Alicia’s change. At home, Alicia did not overtly question the political affiliation of her husband and basked in the regularity of life. Her role at work and home largely symbolizes the middle class of Argentina in this time.
Alicia was inundated by reality when she made the decision to acknowledge her surroundings. A turning point in the film is her reunion with her “devoted friend”. Her friend revealed the atrocities that have occurred in the Dirty War, particularly that of children taken from their poor parents. Alicia winced at the story and rushed her burdened friend out the door. At this point, she sees the newspaper articles plastered on her whiteboard, encounters the suspicious counsel of the priest, and stops to watch the protestors shouting in the streets. The conspicuous issues of reality inundated her content lifestyle, which pressures her into change. She questions her husband and embarks on research of her own. Her adopted daughter served as a crucial point in her journey towards practicality. Alicia is an invaluable element of La historia oficial, as she endured the transition of pain that served as a path towards reconciliation.
In the 1980’s Argentina was attempting to project a new image of the country after a period of discourse and military dictatorship during the la guerra sucia, The Dirty Wars. Films at the time attempted to expose the realities of life under the dictatorship while distancing the countries from the Malvinas War and the Dirty War.
ReplyDeleteThe goal of the films was to promote a more positive international image of a democratic Argentina that was finally liberated from the military dictatorship.
The movie that we screened today, la historia official (1985) directed by Luis Puenzo resonated with an international viewership, because of the middle-class perspective that Puenzo had taken regarding the recent painful events in Argentina’s history. A theme that continued to catch my attention as the film unfolded was the sequences of the little girl Gaby singing a child’s nursery rhyme. The song is repeated time after time throughout the film. The first time we hear it Gaby is taking a bath and singing "In the Land-of-I-Don't-Remember." She is naked, and my first impression of her is that she is a sweet and innocent child who has not yet felt embarrassed by her own naked vulnerability. The next time we hear the song Gaby is calling to speak with her mother but Alicia cannot come to the phone because her mother is treating her hand which Roberto has just smashed in the door. Gaby wants to sing to her mother.
In the land of I-don’t-remember, I take three steps and I’m lost.
One step this way. I wonder if I may.
One step over there.
Oh, what a big scare.
In the land of I-don’t-remember, I take three steps and I’m lost.
One step backward fast, and that’ll be my last…
Because I no longer know where my other foot will go.
Oh, what a big scare.
In the final scene Gaby sits in her grandmother’s rocking chair, singing the song she has memorized. The song continues over the credits. The song that Gaby learns is a metaphor for the painfully frightening past from which Argentina was emerging at that time and heading into an uncertain future.
It also speaks to memory and the need to remember the past in order to change the future. In the opening scene of the movie Alicia begins her history class.
"Our subject is Argentine History."
"No peoples can survive without memory."
"History is the memory of the peoples."
I believe these sequences speak to the necessity to remember where you have come from so that you know where you are going and so you don’t lose your way. Like Argentina had lost its way in previous years.
The movie “La historia official”, directed by Luis Puenzo, is full of symbolism, brilliant music, and character development; all contribute to calling out the middle class and allowing the audience to see the hurt and punishment—and thus atonement—that the middle class does actually receive due to their ignorance, all while keeping the film palatable on an international scale. (This is portrayed so that perhaps the middle class in Argentina during this time period of “kidnapped babies” is spared more punishment since their own personal torture is enough). One of the most vivid ways the film showed this middle-class personal torture (without bringing the government or military into it), was the harsh and abrupt ending of the movie. Roberto, the “father” is on the phone with Gaby—the now assumed “kidnapped” child. They say goodbye, and the physical click sound of hanging up the phone is heard all while the camera zooms in on his teary and agonized face. The hanging up of the phone may be a hint on what was to happen: it all ends. His family, his way of life, everything comes to an abrupt end. The line is cut, they have all said their goodbyes. The zooming in on his face shows that he realizes the weight and reality of everything finally; he is no longer blinded. By physically hurting his wife, he not only symbolically wakes her up in a physically harsh way from her ignorance, he also brings pain and realization upon himself as well. This sheer torture of both parents at the end, and the assumption that the family has fallen apart shows that the filmmakers in their melodramatic way desired to show the world that the middle class was indeed being punished and acknowledging their crimes.
ReplyDeleteThe phone hangs up, the daughter sings a creepy and ironic song, and the movie ends. The audience is left assuming; but the ending is open for interpretation. The filmmakers had to be extremely purposeful in this. The ending allows the audience to now emotionally connect with the characters’ chaotic and confused pain. An audience wants catharsis and resolution, but the movie ends chaotically and nothing is resolved. It is as if the filmmakers in this time after the dictatorship (and kidnapping of babies) place the burden of the middle class on the audience (which was most likely the middle class in Argentina at that time). The ending would hopefully help bring full realization to not only the parents in the movie, but to the audience as well. The ending might just be in place to help the audience desire to take action. An open ending forces the audience to see that fictional characters cannot resolve this very real problem on simply a screen; hopefully the ending sparks the audiences’ hearts to want a solution, hopefully the ending moves them to real action in the real world.
The film we viewed today was The Official Story made in 1985. It is astonishing how bold the governments intentions for the film come across. We had previously discussed the importance at looking at the economic aspects of the film. The fact that the government funded this movie is quite clear and because of that we can see what attributes of Argentina the governing politicians try to point out for the international scene. One of the most prominent aspects is this theme of unawareness. We see this theme strung those many different elements the students, Alicia, songs and certain lines. However, Alicia is one of the best examples. Throughout the film she is called out for being unaware and not paying attention. In one scene, after years of being a history teacher, the students post many news articles of the terror in Argentina on the blackboard. This just goes to show that although she has been teaching the history, she has missed or not noticed all of this information about the government that the students find. This film reflects the idea that the Argentine middle class dismissed the cruelty that the working class was taking from the military coo. The film takes on a very straightforward style in directing a clear message towards the sector of the Argentine middle class. I believe the film is trying to make the audience feel like the middle classes unawareness and dismissal is at fault, but also with the ending of the film, it leads us to feel that they have received punishment enough for their actions. Overall, the film gives a very clear direction for the government funding the industry. It clearly wants to change Argentina's international identity by reconciling the modern Argentina with their past.
ReplyDeleteIn the film La historia official, Director Luis Puenzo reflects on the middle class after the “Dirty War” in Argentinian history. Appealing to a multitude of countries, it is widely praised for its cinematography and intriguing plot. Contrary to the previous films we’ve watch, La Historia Official displayed beautifully crafted shots, intricate sound effects, and exceptional dialogue that showed film’s undertones. The movie revolved around a wife, Alicia, who questioned the appearance of her daughter, Gaby. In the end, Alicia came to the realization that her daughter was taken from a mother who disappeared and likely was murdered by the government. In addition to the main protagonist story, Roberto, who is the father, also comes to the same realization at the end of the film too. It was interesting to see the different paths that each character took to realize the truth of their situation.
ReplyDeleteFor Alicia, the audience noticed her motherly love for Gaby. She is affectionate, yet has dull qualities in the beginning of the movie. She is very prim and proper when she is teaching her classroom and will not accept any act of revolt. An instance of this was when her student questioned her by stating, “History was written by the assassins”. Appalled, she had sent the student out without searching her own thoughts and beliefs. It is at this point in the movie where we see Alicia as submissive to the cultural ideas set forth by the government. Unable to see her own naiveté when it comes to history, she continues to believe in only what the textbooks state. By blindly following what is only written, Alicia is unable to develop into a more complex being and unable to question her own place in the middle class. It is until she rekindles her relationship with a past friend, Ana, that she starts to recognize the scandalous works of her loyal government. During the scene with Ana, Alicia’s expression changed from happiness to surprise to sympathy as Ana tell of how she had gotten raped from being associated with a “subversive”. This scene was catalytic to Alicia’s development and progression throughout the film. Even though her students had covered her board with illegitimacy claims of the government, she disregarded them as acts of violence. As the film progressed, she then discovered the disappearance of mothers and the deceitful conditions of their stolen daughters. After befriending an elderly woman who she believed to be Gaby’s grandmother, she then had a climactic scene with Roberto and left the audience questioning what she would do next. Consequently, she had discovered the truth of her own “sins”, yet the viewer isn’t feeling gratified when she knows about the truth. Instead, we are left with conflicting opinions on whether she should have pursued this endeavor or just stayed ignorant like Roberto.
(Part 2) For Roberto, his ignorance is the epitome of the propaganda that the Argentinian government was using during this time. This film showed the loss of legitimacy with the government and how it not only affected the lower class, but also the upper-middle class as well. Roberto is a business man who had ties with the government and therefore was able to give his wife a daughter. However, just like Alicia in the beginning, he did not question how or what the government did to get his daughter. For most of the film, we see his stubbornness illustrated in the picnic scene and in multiple instances where he tells Alicia to forget about the matter. Even though he is the antagonist, it is hard for the viewer to blame all of Alicia troubles on him. This is because there is no simple answer to who to blame. Is it Roberto for getting his daughter, Alicia for making things more complicated, or the government who committed atrocious things to get Gaby? This unanswered mystery was one of the undertones of the movie and of the “Dirty War”. With this in mind, it is not accurate to say that Roberto was completely unjustified in his action. He was only doing what was best for his family and his love was clearly evident during the final shots of the movie where he cried after saying goodbye to Gaby. With tears rolling down his face, he had admitted to the error of his own “sins”, similar to Alicia. Even though Roberto was ignorant and looking away from his actions, he could not escape the truth and reality of this situation.
ReplyDeleteBoth Alicia and Roberto are seen in more complex tones as the movie advances toward its climax, however, it is interesting to note that both of them were on the same path toward the same bittersweet resolution.
"La historia oficial", directed by Luis Puenzo, is the story of an argentine woman, Alicia, experiencing the direct effects of the "Dirty War" in Argentina. She is the mother of a young girl, Gaby, who was given to her as a baby. Alicia teaches high school history to a group of truth-seeking boys and, in the process, finds out that the truth is harder than expected to find. Throughout the movie, Alicia finds out that Gaby was taken from a young couple and given to her and her husband. While searching for this truth, the viewers see that Argentina at this time is completely in shambles. The country is highly divided between the working class and the middle class. The working class, or the poor, blame the middle class for being ignorant about the historical truth, and being unable to see it. This is shown through Alicia, a middle class woman who is constantly being told by other characters in the movie that she is blind, or unable to see the truth. She must open her eyes to what is going on around her, and it is not until the end of the movie that she is able to have a symbolic awakening of her consciousness. This idea of a mental awakening is characteristic of the neorealist movement of the intellectuals. Ideological shifts were taking place during this time in Argentina, making the country plunder into utter chaos, not knowing their own cultural identity. Evident in the films, Argentina was searching for their own unique identity through the arts, all the while being heavily influenced by international pressures. The country was searching for the 'truth' of their identity, much like Alicia and her history students in "La historia official".
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that the music throughout the film had a melodramatic tone to it. It reminded me of a melodramatic Italian film. The score had a mood similar to the score of Life is Beautiful with Roberto Benigni. Though this film element may be small in our discussion of Argentine Film and the politics and history that influence Argentine cinema, the music does reflect a dramatic tool that would influence the mood of the audience viewing the film. Much of the tragedy in melodramatic Italian films can be shared with Luis Puenzo’s film. There is tragedy in this film as reflected in the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo; the score of the film adds to the melodrama and the tragedy that exists in La Historia Oficial. I find a lot of symbolism in the opening scene of the film. I imagine that the filmmaker is not simply adding scenes just to add them. The opening scene is an entire group of people – a group of teachers and scholars – that sing the national anthem of Argentina. The film seems “put together” and “well established” or at least gives off the sense of an established nationality. The people singing the national anthem seem put together. Puenzo gives off this illusion to break continuously throughout the film as a way to show an Argentina that is broken politically and socially. Many of the characters are constantly struggling in different areas of their lives whether it’s Alicia who eventually breaks down at the end of the film in search of her biological child or her husband who is a hard-working man but towards the end beats his wife. The film reflects an interesting element of Argentine society during this time period concerning social issues and family dynamics. I believe that it all points to Luiz Puenzo’s perspective that even though a school can meet every morning to sing its national anthem, there is still brokenness in the country. As we discussed in class today, this is an international theme. I can’t help but think of the United States. Every morning, students sing the pledge of allegiance in the midst of brokenness among American families. This theme can be reflected in other societies outside of Argentina. What is interesting is that these elements found within the film do indeed reflect an Argentina in need of recovery and redemption as we discussed in class.
ReplyDeleteThe official story directed by Luis Puenzo, not only demonstrates the economic problems that Argentina is going through but a political, and social issues as well. The working class, or the poor, blame the middle class for being ignorant about the historical truth, and being unable to see it. This is shown through Alicia, a middle class woman who is constantly being told by other characters in the movie that she is blind. there is a lot of symbolism through out the mvie that relates back to the actual events that happened in Argentina during the dictatorship. Some elements that I find very intriguing during the movie is the song that the little girl Gaby, sings during the movie. At first I could not relate it to what was actually going on until I payed close attention to the lyrics. the scene at the end with the girl singing in the chair described how scared she was. I think Luis related this song and the artist who wrote it to portray what these kids that were taken away from their families felt and what the grandmothers had to go through to find their grandchild.
ReplyDeleteAn element that caught my eye in the film, La historia official (The Official Story) by Luis Puenzo, 1985 was the overall presentation and organization of the film. The film as a whole had a very American cinema feel too it. Instead of trying to demonstrate the arts in his film as though to enter it into a film festival, Puenzo made the film informative but in an entertaining story, unlike the neorealism movie we watched Monday. The directors made it very easy for the audience to understand the social and political aspects of Argentina at that time. Making the movie very popular to international viewers and broadening the impact Argentina movies had on the industry globally. The goal of films at this time were to present social themes that were discussed openly and freely. The censorship that was placed on cinema during the military regime had been lifted after the election of Raul Alfonsin allowing the film makers to present the difficult but present issue of vanishing working class people.
ReplyDeleteAs the story line progressed the audience could feel the remorse of the characters after the characters had realized what their actions in the previous years had caused. Not only the lives of their children’s biological parents but also the loss of these children they had grown to love. At the beginning of the movie the directed did a very good job of making the audience feel happy and love for the family they were viewing. At the same time, you could almost sense that something wrong was about to happen. This was especially seen after the scene with the husband’s business partners at dinner. As the film continued the ominous feelings progressed. Once Alicia’s friend informed her of the thirty-six days she suffered from and the mothers that lost their children the emotions caused by the film continued to intensify, increasing the entertainment factor for the audience. All of this melodrama hooked audience from all different cultures because if there is one thing everyone can relate to is the connection people have with their loved one. At the end of the movie when you witness the events of the characters as a whole you understand all the struggles Argentina as a country was struggling with at that. The way the film had been written and edited made even the most uninformed spectator aware of how these tragic events came to be.
Another important thing this film made the audience feel was that the middle class people of Argentina realized that because they turned a blind eye to their country as a whole and only took notice to the events that would better their own lives caused their worlds to in the end collapse on itself. This was seen in Roberto’s and Alicia’s characters the most. Both characters decided to do what was best for them in the moment instead of thinking of the future. Causing Roberto to lose his job at the turn of the military regime and Alicia to lose her daughter and her whole world as she knew it.
As opposed to the film from yesterday this film is from the point of view of the middle class in Argentina. This film was something typical would have an audience of younger middle class adults and it showed how the middle class struggled with very distinct problems than those that lived in poverty. The drama was the story of a family that had “stolen” a child from her mother to live with an adopted family. The present mother, Alicia, had always felt guilt for the child, knowing that the child was never rightfully theirs. As the story progresses the problems become larger until the family must face the problems head on. The story concludes with a cliff-hanger and it lets the audience form their own conclusion. The audience asks “What happened to the child?”, “What happened to the grandmother of the child?” Leaving the answers up to the audience only emphasizes the fact that this film was for entertainment purposes.
ReplyDeleteAlthough this is a very dramatic film, it does have some political instances. One example in the film was when Roberto, the father of the family is arguing with his father. Roberto’s father mentions that in the times of the military coup the only ones that prospered were thieves and a “son-of-a-bitch”. Because Roberto was well established, in his family’s eyes he was seen as someone who tore people down in order for his own personal gain. As the story moves along it is clear to see that Roberto wants to take care of his family, but at the cost of other things and with questionable decisions as well.
The mother of the family also plays a very key role in the film, with more political issues as well. During the beginning of the film Alicia was very stuck in her ways and did not accept anything to be true unless it was legitimate in the eyes of society. An example of her personality was when she began working as a history teacher in Argentina where she did not accept anything that contradicted or went against the textbook. As time went on Alicia realized that she needed to be open to more opinion and accept the fact that sometimes things don’t go the way they are supposed to. This ultimately led to Alicia re-thinking of the consequences of having the “adopted” daughter. The people of Argentina had realized that babies were being taken away from poor families and given to “adoptive” families. The people of Argentina started protesting. Even if in writing it meant that the child was theirs, deep down Alicia knew she made the wrong decision.
As the family struggles to gain control of the problems, the family is faced with ethical decisions. Roberto is especially affected and deeply wants things to resolve. His family is full of lies and corrupt ideologies. Now that the people could start to have a voice, the government is constantly put under pressure to do the right thing for society and the family realizes they could lose the little girl, Gaby. This film is very interesting because even if they take place in the same place both have very distinct perspectives and different views towards the government. On the impoverished side you have families that need aid from the government, but don’t receive it. In this film you have a government who helps out the upper middle class. But now that the people have more freedom to express themselves, the middle and upper middle class are the ones that are paying the consequences for their actions. As mentioned before the purpose of this film was to entertain. Although it did have some political topics the overall film was to show the “real” drama that an upper middle class family in Argentina has to go through. Both of these films allow for opinions and more debate on what could be true and what is propaganda.
The film that we watched today in class, The Official Story by Luis Puenzo is largely centered around a theme of loss and redemption. Alicia’s friend, Anna, has lost any ability to feel safe in Buenos Aires due to her being taken, tortured, and raped during the military coup, because of her involvement in a relationship with Pedro. Alicia and Roberto, especially Alicia, atone for the “loss” of their daughter, Gaby, even though she is still present in their lives, she was never truly theirs to take. Alicia realizes this, and in the final scene of the movie, the viewer is left to wonder if Gaby will be forgotten. Gaby is the final person to lose something. She has not only lost her biological parents, but the parents who adopted her, too.
ReplyDeleteThe scene that I found most interesting in Puenzo’s film was the confession of Alicia to the priest. She went to confession to ask forgiveness for her sin of taking Gaby. The priest, however said she had not sinned. From a viewer’s perspective, Alicia had sinned because she chose to turn a blind eye to the whereabouts and workings of how Gaby became her daughter. Alicia chose to be ignorant and naïve of the workings and heinous crimes of the military coup, and in the end hurt not only herself, but also her daughter, and is very much to blame.
The other scene that I found to be interesting was again when Alicia went to confession, but told the priest of her childhood. Her mother and father died when she was young, and she would sit in a rocking chair and wait for them to come home, to save her. The final scene of the movie leaves the viewers with an image of Gaby sitting in a rocking chair in the middle of the night waiting for Alicia to take her home. Gaby sings the song of memory and forgetting, leading viewers to interpret that she has been forgotten. Lastly, the theme of loss and redemption relates to Argentina’s political situation at the time because all the families of the working class disappeared have lost their loved ones, and the middle class are trying to or should recognize the atrocities of the military coup, and by doing so will redeem themselves through the eyes of those who were most affected.
As stated, the movie watched in class, The Official Story directed by advertiser Luis Puenzo, takes a closer look at the aftermath of the horrific events that took place in the Dirty War as seen by a well-to-do mother and her family. The most obvious connections this film has to this are the mothers of the plaza, whom the main character Alicia sees many times in the film and in different contexts. Furthermore, the knowledge of her students who “pay attention” makes it so that Alicia cannot continue to turn a blind eye to the atrocities of the war. Lastly, the narration by Alicia’s friend Anna of being kidnapped and tortured for the simple fact of being at one time associated with someone on the losing side connects the film to this time period. It is during this conversation that Alicia is first made aware of the children that were taken from their pregnant mothers (whom were later killed) and given to wealthy families who didn’t ask questions.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the film, we see how Alicia’s awakening mirrors the awakening of the Argentinian middle class. When Anna reveals what had been done to her, Alicia asks her why she didn’t report it to anyone, to which Anna replies something along the lines of, “to whom would I have reported it to?” Alicia begins to question her own daughter, Gaby, which starts a thorough quest to find out where Gaby came from. Alicia, a school teacher, is also accused of being complacent and deaf by her students, one of whom she sends outside of class for asking too many questions. Later in the film, with her hair wild and free (a stark change from the rigid bun she wears at the beginning), she praises this student for his rhetoric and encourages him to keep asking these tough questions. She is also put into contact with the mothers of the plaza due to a chance meeting at the hospital. This effectively turns the demonstrators in the plaza into something more personal for her. Near the end of the film, Alicia goes to the plaza and locks eyes with one of the “mothers” (who the audience is led to believe could be Gaby’s real grandmother). The fact that she doesn’t look away represents how in that current moment, Argentina was willing to “lock eyes” with its problems, and was not afraid to face its sad past. The film ends with Alicia confronting her husband, Roberto, who took home Gaby in the first place. Roberto, who represents the “winning” side of the Dirty War, reveals himself to be scared and angry.
This film, as discussed in class, was Argentina’s way of reintroducing itself to the world after years of political discord, corruption, and social injustice. Its commercial success at film festivals and at the Academy Awards reveals an initial openness from the world to accept this film as a quasi-apology, but Argentina itself would have to deal with the fallout from this time period for many years to come. This film was diverting to watch and smoothly incorporates the need for the films commercial success as well as its artistic merit. Ultimately, it was easy to see why this movie was successful.
The Official Story (1985) by Luis Puenzo was, in my opinion, a very emotionally driven story supported by the political events that followed the Dirty War in Argentina in the late 1900’s. In relation to the stories correspondence with the actual events that took place, the story takes the viewer into the result society in Argentine after the rearrangement of the governmental control. I think that the film does present a neorealist view that pits the working class against the middle class in a way that shows the societal expectations of each class and the social dilemmas that arise in each group. Alicia represents the woes and virtues of the middle class at the time that followed the revolution in Argentina. She lives a seemingly great life and does what she likes to do, which is teaching history as a professor. Her friend Ana also represents the same societal group but seems to experience the negative consequences that arose from the fallout of the Dirty War. Being held in captivity and being brutally interrogated, Ana confides in Alicia about the, once deemed, conspiracy stories that cause her to question what the official story is behind the so-called disappearances of random citizens, the claims of clandestine anarchy within the government’s grasp and most importantly, she questions the legitimacy of the adoption of her 5 year old daughter Gaby. Sara (I think is the name of the potential grandmother) represents the poor or working class who had no money or resources to find her missing loved ones but used the power to protest to catch the attention of Alicia. Once the reality that her husband’s government supported job may have had something to do with an abduction, Alicia realizes that the truth may not have been the actual story of events that she pushed her students to acknowledge in class.
ReplyDeleteFalicov (2007) states that at this time, Argentine film was at a resurgence from its near collapse and was revamped to appeal to a middle class, educated and intellectual audience. It makes since that this story is geared toward that specific type of audience based on the way the story presents the protagonist of the film who happens to be a middle class wife and mother. Not only does this film connect with this specific group, it also tells a story that many of them can relate to in regards to the illegal adoptions and sale of babies who were born to people in government captivity. Although this story has its targeted audience, I think that it is a film that projects an ample amount of symbolism and emotional suspense to appeal to a variety of audiences while keeping the message intellectually and historically sound.
In The Official Story, Alicia (Norma Aleandro) lives a comfortable middle class life. She teaches History to high school students and enjoys a family that includes her well-to-do husband Roberto (Hector Alterio) and 5-year old adopted daughter Gaby (Analia Castro). Not used to asking questions, she believes whatever she has read in history books and is confused when one of her students tells her that "history is written by assassins." She sees the demonstrations of the "Mothers of Plaza de Mayo", a group seeking information about missing family members but remains uninvolved. When her friend Ana visits after living in exile for many years, however, she learns, in an intensely emotional scene, that Ana had been imprisoned and tortured by the police trying to locate her husband, a suspected "subversive". This move reaches out to the hearts and minds of most Argentines. First of all, the main issue which is the cause for the problems which arise in the household of Alicia and Roberto, is one with which the older generation of Argentines has had to deal with in their own lives. Moreover, the reality and discomfort which is seen in various instances during the movie can easily be a picture of what was going on in countless households during that time period. In the movie we see some of what is going on in the government a little bit by the actual protests, but mostly by the situations which surround Alicia. The story of Alicia's friend Ana and the circumstances involving her daughter all point to great distress in the country's government. Whilst the government has much to do with the movie, the story revolves more around the impact which the government has on a simple Argentine family and their relationships with each other. When the grandfather was walking with the children he explained that no one should be ashamed to be poor, nor is it an honor to be rich. Then a child commented that it was better to be rich though. The grandfather retaliated with the fact that it depends on what you had to do and how you became rich. Ana tells Alicia that many others had "disappeared" and that babies had been taken from their mothers and given to childless friends of the junta. Alicia begins to wonder if her own child was the daughter of a political victim and questions her husband but when he is evasive, she suspects that he may be hiding a dark secret. Although fearful at the prospect of losing Gaby, Alicia is determined to find out about her daughter's past and begins to search hospital records and government archives. Ultimately, she must confront her own responsibility in a climax of shattering force that underscores the tragedy of political ideologues who would rather destroy family solidarity than risk losing power.
ReplyDelete(Note, I accidentally originally posted this on Jan 5th in January 4th blog)
ReplyDeleteOne of the scenes that caught my attention from “The Official Story” was when Alicia and her high school friend were sitting on the couch together, and the high school friend reveals the tragic torture that she endured. She explains to Alicia that because of her affiliation with her domestic partner who must have been on bad terms with the government, she was taken and interrogated by the military. They interrogated her over and over again, wanting her to tell them the whereabouts of her partner. She repeatedly told them she had not seen him in 2 years and she did not know where he was, but they did not believe her. They almost drowned her several times, she was beaten and raped. She also mentions that she was not alone in the building she was held captive in. The screams of other women in all around her were so loud that she could not differentiate her own screams from others. She goes on to reveal that many women who were captured were also pregnant, and as soon as they gave birth, their babies were taken from them and sold to wealthy people, while they were killed. As soon as the friend mentions this, Alicia becomes defensive since she has an adopted daughter that her husband randomly showed up with 5 years ago. The friend continues to share that as soon as she was let go, she fled the country and moved to Europe with her son.
This scene reveals very important historical on goings that took place during the military dictatorship era of Argentina. The military would take captive anyone thought to associate with radical and anti-military government, and they would interrogate and torture them. Pregnant women’s babies were taken from them as soon as they were born, and many men and women in the working class were killed. This scene also reveals the privilege of the middle class compared to the working class. The majority of people killed by the military regime were in the working class. The middle class mostly stayed clear of military punishment because they benefitted not only financially, but also in their family safety by being affiliated with the ideals of the military force. Many middle class educated/intellectual people fled the country in fear, including Alicia’s friend, who had the financial resources to get her and her son to a different country. Alicia, as a wealthy middle class woman, had the privilege to be oblivious to the reality of the actions being conducted by the military, she was even blind to the truth that her husband was involved with the military dictatorship. Her adopted daughter was given to her by her husband, and she had no idea that her child could have been one of the babies that was taken from their mothers.
This scene is supposed to acknowledge the reality of the evil done in Argentina during the military dictatorship, while directing the idea of a price to be paid for the majority of the middle class for allowing this to happen and not standing up for what was right. It also allows the audience to view the democracy of the early 80’s as a much more peaceful and effective government compared to the events during the military dictatorship. This scene would help the international audience to see Argentina for the good, bad, and the ugly; to see that it is making progress towards moving on towards building a more peaceful democracy within the country.