''Sisters'' () is a 2005 drama film written and directed by Julia Solomonoff, her first feature motion picture. The picture has a number of producers, including: Mariela Besuievski, Pablo Bossi, Florencia Enghel,

Gerardo Herrero Gerardo Herrero Pérez-Gamir (born 28 January 1953) is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer. He is a prolific promoter of international coproductions and collaborations between Spain and Hispanic American countries. From 1993 to ...

, Vanessa Ragone,

Walter Salles Walter Moreira Salles Júnior (; ; born 12 April 1956) is a Brazilian filmmaker. A major figure of the Resumption Cinema in Brazil, Salles is widely regarded as one of the greatest Brazilian filmmakers of all time. His List of awards and nomina ...

, and Ariel Saúl. The film features

Valeria Bertuccelli Mónica Valeria Bertuccelli (born 30 November 1969) is an Argentine actress, director and writer. Born in San Nicolás de los Arroyos, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, she began her career in experimental theatre, and later worked in the San ...

, Ingrid Rubio, among others.

Plot

In 1976, during the political turmoil in Argentina, two sisters flee their country right after Natalia's politically active boyfriend Martin disappears; one goes to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, and the other to

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. After eight years in Spain, Natalia ( Ingrid Rubio) travels to Texas to visit her sister Elena (

), who's now a suburban wife and mother. She brings with her their father's manuscript of his last novel. The unpublished novel reveals the story of their family during the Argentine dictatorship. Using extensive flashbacks of the sisters early years in Argentina during the ''junta'' dictatorship, the director reveals family guilt and suppressed resentment.

Cast

Background

The film is based on the real political events that took place in Argentina after

Jorge Rafael Videla Jorge Rafael Videla ( ; ; 2 August 1925 – 17 May 2013) was an Argentine military officer and the ''de facto'' President of Argentina from 1976 to 1981, during the National Reorganization Process. His rule, which was during the time of Operati ...

's reactionary military ''junta'' assumed power on March 24, 1976. During the junta's rule: the parliament was suspended, unions, political parties and provincial governments were banned, and in what became known as the

Dirty War The Dirty War () is the name used by the military junta or National Reorganization Process, civic-military dictatorship of Argentina () for its period of state terrorism in Argentina from 1974 to 1983. During this campaign, military and secu ...

between 9,000 and 30,000 people deemed left-wing "subversives" disappeared from society.

Production

''Sisters'' is an Argentine-Spanish-Brazilian co-production by Cruzdelsur Zona Audiovisual, Patagonik Film Group, Tornasol Films and Videofilmes.

Release

The film was presented at the Buenos Aires Independent Film Festival (BAFICI) in April 2005, with a theatrical release date in Argentina set for 28 April 2005. It was released theatrically in Spain on 25 November 2005.

Critical reception

Jeannette Catsoulis, film critic for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' liked the film, especially the acting of

and Ingrid Rubio, and wrote, "Though constrained by a directing style that insists on coloring within the lines, the movie is most successful in the rocky emotional spaces in which the sisters renegotiate their relationship and in which Elena, struggling with English, endures the painful process of assimilation...both actresses make their director look very good indeed." In the same vein, Jonathan Holland, film critic for ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' magazine, appreciated the acting but gave the film a mixed review and wrote, "The political skeleton of 1970's Argentina rolls out of the closet to mostly positive effect in Julia Solomonoff's ''Sisters,'' a solidly-built but somewhat airless debut from the assistant director of '' The Motorcycle Diaries.'' The complex plot doesn't fully exploit the possibilities for suspense, but first-class perfs, great atmospherics and an upbeat message combine to make the pic work better as a sibling drama than as a thriller." Critic V.A. Mesetto thought the screenplay was predictable but also likes the acting, and wrote, "Solomonoff draws out vivid performances by Valeria Bertuccelli (Elena) and Ingrid Rubio (Natalia) that make up for the script's predictability." Film critic Ed Gonzalez wrote, "Solomonoff doesn't strike very interesting contrasts between past and present, but her actresses certainly do: Rubio and Bertucelli express how resentment eats away at their characters' sisterhood so richly that the many flashbacks to Argentina, shot uninterestingly in gritty hand-held gestures, seem almost unnecessary."Gonzalez, Ed
''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yor ...

,'' film review, 2006. Last accessed: February 17, 2008.

Distribution

The film was first presented at the

Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema The Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema (BAFICI, ) is an international festival of independent films organized each year in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. History The festival had its first edition in April 1999 and i ...

on April 14, 2005. It opened wide in the country on April 28, 2005. The film was screened at various film festivals, including: the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, on September 9, 2005; the

São Paulo International Film Festival The São Paulo International Film Festival (), also known internationally as Mostra, is an annual film festival held in the city of São Paulo, Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South Ame ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

; the Valladolid International Film Festival,

; the Bangkok International Film Festival,

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

; the Toulouse Latin America Film Festival, France; and others. In the

it opened in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

on December 6, 2006.

DVD

Region 2 DVD DVD region codes are a digital rights management technique introduced in 1997. It is designed to allow rights holders to control the international distribution of a DVD release, including its content, release date, and price, all according to t ...

, was released in Europe on May 16, 2006 by Cameo Media.

Reception

Awards

Nominations *

Valladolid International Film Festival The Valladolid International Film Festival, popularly known as Seminci (short for ; ), is a film festival held annually in Valladolid, Spain. First held in 1956 as ('Valladolid Religious Film Week'), the Seminci is one of the longest-standing fi ...

: Golden Spike, Julia Solomonoff; 2005. * Butaca Awards: Butaca; Best Catalan Film Actress, Ingrid Rubio; 2006. *

Argentine Film Critics Association Awards The Argentine Film Critics Association () is an organization of Argentine-based journalists and correspondents. The association presents the ''Silver Condor Awards'' (''Premios Cóndor de Plata'') honoring achievements in Argentine cinema. The aw ...

: Silver Condor; Best Actress, Valeria Bertuccelli; Best Costume Design, Beatriz De Benedetto and Fátima Macera; 2006.

References

External links

*
''Hermanas''
at the

cinenacional.com Cinenacional.com is a web portal and web-based database about Argentine cinema. It is the most comprehensive site for information about the Argentine film industry, with a vast array of information on films, television programs, directors, actor ...

''Hermanas''
film review at ''Leer Cine'' by Daniela Vilaboa {{in lang, es
''Hermanas''
film trailer at

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

2005 films 2000s political drama films Dirty War films Films about Latin American military dictatorships Films set in the 1970s Films set in the 1980s Argentine independent films 2005 independent films 2000s Spanish-language films Brazilian independent films Spanish independent films 2005 drama films Films scored by Lucio Godoy Films set in Texas 2000s Argentine films 2000s Spanish films Tornasol Films films Films about sisters 2000s Brazilian films Spanish-language independent films Spanish-language Brazilian films Films by Argentine women directors