The premiere of “Argentina 1985” continues to generate high expectations and, although it has not yet reached national cinemas, after its premiere at the most important Film Festivals in the world it received the best reviews from experts. The American press described the film’s protagonist, Ricardo Darín, as “one of the best actors in the world.” The Argentine actor gives life to the prosecutor Julio César Strassera who sat on the bench the heads of the last civic-military dictatorship in Argentina.
Official flyer of the film
Directed by Santiago Mitre, the co-star is Peter Lanzani, who puts himself in the shoes of prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo, the other of the prosecutors who carried out the trial considered one of the most important in Argentina and the region. The story works a reflective and human emotional rope from which it is difficult to escape. There is likely to be controversy, it is to be expected. All this has me quite careless, my expectations are placed on how this unknown story will arrive for those under 30 years old, “said the actor in dialogue with the Diario de Navarra about the premiere of the film in his native country. And he added: “I do not claim to the boys who did not live what they have among their first five vital themes; life goes at a speed that doesn’t allow you to look back. I am given hope by those who are interested in what happened so as not to repeat the same mistakes. ‘Argentina, 1985’ tells a historical fact that can cross our present, looks to the future.”
Strassera and Moreno Ocampo in the trial against the juntas
In turn, he reflected on the Spanish situation, which did not prosecute those responsible for his dictatorship led by General Francisco Franco.” They are stories that have a lot of pain behind them, a lot of lives lost. That is why I am very respectful of the process of reflective maturation that each country necessarily has to have when addressing these issues. Spain will do it at some point, it remains to be found out how much time it needs to address that process in modern terms,” he said. The story we tell is not 40 years old, and we needed that time to make a movie. We must not push, because we can get the shot for culture with these harsh issues, “he said in relation to the process that Argentina went through to condemn the dictators.
Ricardo Darín with Santiago Mitre, director of the film, at the Venice Film Festival
On his character, he reflected: “In the film everything is concentrated on the figure of Strassera, but in reality it was supported by a young prosecution team, it was a team effort. It is the story of an ordinary man in a very extraordinary context. Many did not get on, they did it for a matter of courage and bravery.” In that line he agreed that this is the film for which he would like to be remembered: “It is going to be placed in a memorable place. And I think it’s one of those movies that’s going to age well. To the extent that one takes distance from the virulence of the moment one can appreciate it. I keep discovering new things in her.”
In turn, he recalled that the film was shot in historical places: “I was impressed to enter the courtroom of the Palace of Courts of Buenos Aires, where the original trial was held. When I saw it full of extras I forgot that it was a movie, I traveled to the past. This September 18 marks the 37th anniversary of Strassera’s ‘never again’ plea.” The lives lost are irretrievable, the pain of the Dictatorship is not going to be transformed into anything else. This celebration can provide a kind of balm. The appearance of truth and justice I imagine will make those who have suffered feel more accompanied, not overwhelmed, as they felt. It is a minimal reparation because, I insist, the lives lost are not recovered,” the actor concluded.
