''The Dark Side of the Heart'' ( es, El lado oscuro del corazón) is a 1992 Argentine

surrealist Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...

romantic

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

film written and directed by

Eliseo Subiela Eliseo Alberto Subiela (December 27, 1944 – December 25, 2016) was an Argentine film director and writer. His works are considered to be in the ' magic realism' genre. Subiela was the father of actress, Guadalupe Subiela (who acted in her f ...

. The film was selected as the Argentine entry for the

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the

65th Academy Awards The 65th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released in 1992 in the United States and took place on March 29, 1993, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles begi ...

, but was not accepted as a nominee. It is currently considered a

cult film A cult film or cult movie, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage ...

.The return of ‘The dark side of the heart’, by Jordi Costa: "A film that perfectly fits the concept of cult cinema is back in theaters: nobody gave a penny for it (at the time of its release), not even its director"
09-07-2017, ''

El País ''El País'' (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. ''El País'' is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA. It is the second most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . ''El Pa ...

'' (in Spanish)

Plot

Oliverio (Grandinetti), a Bohemian poet, travels through Buenos Aires with his friends, harassed by Death, looking for a woman capable of “flying”. In the course of the film, the poetry of Mario Benedetti, Juan Gelman and Oliverio Girondo is seen intermingled with the thickest places of Argentine and Uruguayan artistic daily life. From the barbecue, to the battered bars of Buenos Aires and Montevideo, the main character's thought is intermittently intertwined with fiction, only to be able to better show the central character's thinking. The story unfolds in the comings and goings of Oliverio, through his world, in which, exchanging food for poetry, or asking for coins on street corners, seeing Mario Benedetti reciting his poems in German, seeing Genetic sculptures, talking to cows, and conversing with death seem to be part of any given day in the life of a poet.

Cast

Darío Grandinetti Darío Alejandro Grandinetti (born March 5, 1959) is an Argentine actor. He is known for his numerous roles in television, theater and film, where he participated in films by renowned directors such as Alejandro Doria, Pedro Almodóvar and Dami ...

as Oliverio *

Sandra Ballesteros Sandra or SANDRA may refer to: People * Sandra (given name) * Sandra (singer) (born 1962), German pop singer * Margaretha Sandra (1629–1674), Dutch soldier * Sandra (orangutan), who won the legal right to be defined as a "non-human person" Pla ...

as Ana *

Nacha Guevara Nacha Guevara (born Clotilde Acosta, October 3, 1940) is an Argentine singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress from Mar de Plata, Buenos Aires province. Biography Trained as a dancer and actress, she discovered by chance a career as a singer beco ...

as Death *

André Melançon André Melançon (February 18, 1942 - August 23, 2016) was a Canadian actor, screenwriter and film director, best known for directing and writing several installments in the Tales for All series of children's films. Career The versatile André M ...

as Erik *

Jean Pierre Reguerraz Jean-Pierre Reguerraz (1939 – November 2, 2007) was an Argentine stage and film actor noted for his deep bass voice. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1939 of French parents, he studied acting in Europe before returning to Argentina in 1 ...

as Gustavo *

Mónica Galán Mónica Galán (October 16, 1950 – January 15, 2019) was an Argentine actress. She was a character actor seen on TV, Film and in the theatre. Life Galán was born in 1950 in Buenos Aires. Galán graduated from the National School of Dramati ...

as the ex-wife * Inés Vernengo: the blind girl

Awards

Montreal World Film Festival The Montreal World Film Festival (WFF; french: le Festival des Films du Monde) was one of Canada's oldest international film festivals and the only competitive film festival in North America accredited by the FIAPF (although the Toronto Internat ...

* Grand Prix des Amériques

Biarritz Film Festival The Biarritz Festival Latin America (french: Festival Biarritz Amérique Latine) is an international film festival held annually in the French city of Biarritz, since 1979 to promote the Latin American cinema and culture with the French people ...

* Best Actor * Best Actress

Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival The Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival ( es, links=no, Festival de Cine Iberoamericano de Huelva), held since 1975 in Huelva, Spain, is the oldest film festival in Europe dedicated to the Ibero-American cinema. During the first editions, it was ...

* Critic Award

Havana Film Festival The Havana Film Festival is a Cuban festival that focuses on the promotion of Latin American filmmakers. It is also known in Spanish as ''Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano de La Habana,'' and in English as International Festiva ...

* Best Actor

Argentine Academy of Cinematography Arts and Sciences Awards The Argentine Academy of Cinematography Arts and Sciences Awards are given by the Argentine Academy of Cinematography Arts and Sciences ( es, Academia de las Artes y Ciencias Cinematográficas de la Argentina) to honor achievement in Argentine cin ...

* Best Director * Best Cinematography * Best Art Direction * Best Editing 43rd

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

* Jury Award of the Readers of the Berliner Zeitung newspaper, International Forum of Young Cinema

Cartagena Film Festival The Cartagena Film Festival ( es, Festival Internacional de Cine de Cartagena de Indias), or FICCI, is a film festival held in Cartagena, Colombia, which focuses mainly on the promotion of Colombian television series, Latin American films and short ...

* Best Director * Best Cinematography * Critics Jury Award Cinoche International Film Festival of Baie-Comeau * Best Screenplay Festival du film de Sept-Îles * Best Film Silver Condor, Argentine Film Critics Association * Best Director * Best Cinematography * Best Art Direction * Best Female Revelation Bergamo Film Meeting * “Rosa Camuna” Award for Best Film Sin Cortes Awards * Best film * Best Screenplay * Best Art Direction * Best Original Music Score * Best Female Revelation Argentores Awards * Best Film Book

Festival de Gramado The Gramado Film Festival ( pt, Festival de Gramado) is an international film festival held annually in the Brazilian city of Gramado, Rio Grande do Sul, since 1973. In 1992, the festival began to award Latin American films produced outside of Br ...

* Best Director * Best Actor * Best Original Music Score

Sequel

A sequel titled '' The Dark Side of the Heart 2'' was released in 2001. A Spanish-Argentine co-production, also written and directed by Eliseo Subiela, and starring Darío Grandinetti and Sandra Ballesteros, along with Ariadna Gil and Nacha Guevara. It was released on July 5, 2001.

References

External links