Film Forum

The Oscar-nominated feature ARGENTINA, 1985 rekindled interest in Argentina’s murderous military dictatorship (1976-1983). THE TRIAL, based on never-before-seen courtroom footage, is a shocking record of the first major prosecution of crimes against humanity since Nuremberg. Facing a group of nine former military officers — including the infamous Jorge Rafael Videla, onetime President of Argentina — survivors and parents of the disappeared (los desaparecidos) recount harassment, property theft, kidnapping (high school students abducted during the “Night of the Pencils”), the theft of newborn babies, torture, rape, and mass killings. The defense testifies that their “dirty war” was a response to subversives and leftist terror. The chief prosecutor legendarily ends his closing argument: “¡Nunca mas!”

Presented with support from The Richard Brick, Geri Ashur, and Sara Bershtel Fund for Social Justice Documentaries and Robert E. Appel Fund for Spanish and Portuguese Language Films

2022     ARGENTINA     177 MIN.     IN SPANISH WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES

Reviews

CRITIC'S PICK. "Ulises de la Orden's conscientious documentary is a necessary act of memory — for such is the only way justice truly endures... [A] respectful, smartly abridged account... The testimony by dignified witnesses from all walks of life is gripping... [The film] offers a stirring universal example of justice served, at a time when so many American voters fear the prospect of an authoritarian president already impeached once for inciting an insurrection."
– Nicolas Rapold, The New York Times
Read the full review.

“Unexpectedly cinematic. Compulsively watchable.”
– Darren Hughes, Filmmaker Magazine

“A compelling narration of atrocities that were ‘difficult to imagine before and to understand afterwards,’ as prosecutor Julio Cesar Strassera put in his memorable closing argument, and of the trial that attempted such a colossal task.”
– Clara Miranda Scherfig, Screen Slate

“Argentine director Ulises de la Orden went through 530 hours of historical footage to craft a moving edit of one of the most important Latin American trials. Going right to the source itself… a carefully curated and emotional supercut of the actual archive material. (The director) does not let the culprits steal the narrative. He is more interested in the victims. There is a powerful anonymity to the testimonies. They stand for the many unheard, the many lost. There is a sense of people seeking justice and accountability. ”
– Susanne Gottlieb, Cineuropa