Beyond the 2010 Oscars: 5 Great Movies from Argentina

WRITTEN BY Mark Chesnut

If you pay attention to the Academy Awards, you know that The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos), a police drama from Argentina, won the 2010 Oscar for best foreign language film.
If you’re still hankering for an Argentinean film fix, not to worry. I’ve picked out five noteworthy movies from down Argentine way. Have a favorite? Please share!

1. The Official Story (La Historia Oficial): This heartbreaking drama —winner of best foreign film in 1985 — is about a woman in Buenos Aires who slowly comes to realize that the child that she and her husband adopted was a victim of the government’s disappearances during the so-called Dirty War of the 1970s.

2. Nine Queens (Nueve Reinas): This sly 2000 caper weaves a tangled story of deceit and con games, with intriguing plot twists. If you liked The Spanish Prisoner, you’ll love this. It was nominated for 28 awards in Latin America, the United States and Europe, and won 21 of them. (Travelers take note: much of the action takes place at the Hilton Buenos Aires, in the Puerto Madero district.)

3. Plata Quemada (sometimes called Burnt Money): This 2000 crime drama tells the true story of two gay men who become lovers and participate in a bank robbery in 1965 Buenos Aires. Among its critical recognition was the Goya award for best Spanish language film in 2001.

4. Apartment Zero: Colin Firth (who stars in this year’s well-received A Single Man) plays the off-kilter owner of a revival movie house in Buenos Aires, in this 1989 psychological drama.

5. Evita: All right, all right. I know I’ll get some flack for mentioning the 1996 movie version of this rock opera, which was especially controversial in some circles because of its choice of Madonna to play Argentine first lady Eva Duarte de Perón. But it’s still an entertaining musical.

Two more, from Karla, a LatinFlyer.com reader from Argentina who now resides in Miami:
• El Hijo de la Novia: This 2001 comedy-drama stars Ricardo Darín and Norma Aleandro, and was directed by Juan José Campanella, who won the Oscar for El Secreto de tus Ojos.
• Cuestión de Principios: Ethics are put to the test in this 2009 comedy staring Pablo Echarri, Federico Luppi and Norma Aleandro.