Review of Imagining Argentina (2003) by Candice A — 29 Jun 2007

What an incredible disappointment this film turned out to be. The idea of turning a spotlight on the abductions in Argentina during that time period was a great idea. Yet, the historical value of the events lose credibility and are overshadowed by the supernatural occurrences, which were very much misplaced.

The character played by Antonia Banderas, who woke up one day to find that he was a psychic that could tell people the fate of their loved ones was not relevant to the history of Argentina or to the characters in the film.

In every other way, Antonio's character was completely passive, which horribly offset the fact that his wife was a revolutionary. Instead of the difference between them adding conflict to the narrative, it actually made all her efforts seem in vein.

And the brutal and consistent rapes of his daughter by the soldiers transformed the story into monstrous imaginings. The plot gets lost, and one finds it difficult to remember that the original event is a very human story.

Terribly disappointing.