Rojo

(Rojo)
Benjamín Naishtat | Fiction, Drama, Thriller

2018 | 109 minutes | Argentina, Brazil, France, The Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland

As the country faces political turmoil, Claudio is involved in a dangerous situation when he discovers a connection between a stranger and his wife's best friend's missing brother.

South America Latin American Studies Criminal Justice Family Political Science Fascism + Repression
Synopsis

What was the Argentinian mindset immediately preceding Jorge Videla’s right-wing military coup? Director Benjamín Naishtat’s darkly funny, highly stylish film immerses itself in Argentina’s collective subconscious in 1975, resulting in an x-ray image of madness and moral decline.

Set in an Argentinian provincial town, an unknown man and a crime unsettle the quiet life of a successful lawyer. It’s not that the lawyer committed the crime; rather, his looking the other way and doing nothing led to people dying.

Filmed in the style of 1970s crime dramas, Rojo can be seen as an absurd thriller and as a bitter analysis of the national indifference that led to Argentina suffering four consecutive military coups in 1976. As in Rojo, countless people disappeared in the desert, never to be seen again.

Reviews

"This subtly disturbing, queasily tense satirical nightmare from 33-year-old Argentinian filmmaker Benjamín Naishtat answers that question with a story of group neurosis and complicit wretchedness. He shows that, for those left behind, what also gradually disappeared was their peace of mind, their self-respect and their ability to communicate what was happening or how they felt: an uncanny, insidious erosion of self." — Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Citation
Main credits

Naishtat, Benjamín (film director)
Naishtat, Benjamín (screenwriter)
Sarasola-Day, Barbara (film producer)
Eibuszyc, Federico (film producer)
Grandinetti, Darío (actor)
Frigerio, Andrea (actor)
Castro, Alfredo (actor)
Cremonesi, Diego (actor)

Other credits

Director of photography, Pedro Sotero; editor, Andrés Quaranta; music, Vincent van Warmerdam.


Citation
Cataloging
Keywords
Argentina,1970s,political turmoil,lawyer,stranger,incident,dark turn,mystery,missing brother,detective,danger,suspense,corruption,societal upheaval,moral ambiguity,secrets,tension,psychological thriller,criminal justice,crime,judiciary,police reform,corrections,criminal law,judicial system,justice department,prosecution,judgement,criminal law,courts and corrections,corrections institutes,south america,south american countries,countries in south america,argentina,bolivia,brazil,chile,colombia,ecuador,guyana,paraguay,peru,suriname,uruguay,venezuela,south american politics,south american culture,south american cuisine,south american education,south america in media,south american languages,south america history,latin american studies,caribbean american studies,island studies,latin american culture,latin american history,latin american politics, caribbean american culture,caribbean american history,caribbean american politics, latin american languages,latin american and caribbean studies,hispanic american studies,hispanic people,hispanic culture,hispanic politics,family,kin,fellowship,household,immediate family,extended family,multigenerational family,multigenerational household,kinfolk,family tree,genealogy,nuclear family,modern family,family tree,political science,micropolitics,macropolitics,political theory,political education,political movements,political thinking,political criticism,poly sci,polysci,political sci,political sciences,political history,history of politics,political systems,authority,authoritarianism,dictatorship,military regime,military government,fascism,repression,oppression,political oppression,political repression,far right,far right wing,modern fascism; "Rojo"; Pragda Films;
Clips
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Festivals

Buma Music in Motion - Best Original Composition in Film; Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards - Silver Condor - Best Director, Best Supporting Actor,  Best Actor; Guadalajara International Film Festival - Best Actor; International Cinephile Society Awards - Best Picture Not Released in 2018; Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Argentina - Best Director, Best Editing, Best Screenplay, Best Film, Best Actor,  Best Sound; San Sebastián International Film Festival - Jury Prize Best Cinematography, Silver Seashell for Best Director, Best Actor; Toronto International Film Festival; Rotterdam International Film Festival; Guadalajara International Film Festival; Istanbul International Film Festival

DIRECTOR: Benjamín Naishtat

NATIONALITY: Argentina, Brazil, France, The Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland

YEAR: 2018

GENRE: Fiction, Drama, Thriller

LANGUAGE: Spanish

COLOR / B&W: Color

GRADE LEVEL: High School, College, Adults

SUBTITLE/CC: AVAILABLE

AUDIO DESCRIPTION: NOT AVAILABLE

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