''The Silence of the Mole'' ( Spanish: ''El silencio del topo'') is a 2021 Guatemalan

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

directed by Anaïs Taracena. It tells the story of the journalist Elías Barahona, better known as ''The Mole'', who between 1976 and 1980 was infiltrated as press secretary of the Guatemalan Ministry of the Interior. It was selected as the Guatemalan entry in the Best International Feature Film at the 95th Academy Awards, but was not nominated.

Synopsis

Throughout the

1970s File:1970s decade montage.jpg, Clockwise from top left: U.S. President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office following the Watergate scandal in 1974; The United States was still involved in the Vietnam War i ...

, journalist Elías Barahona, alias ''El Topo'' (The Mole), infiltrated the heart of one of Guatemala's most repressive governments. By revealing the story of this reserved and unique individual, ''The Silence of the Mole'' captures the moments when revelations from the past open cracks in the walls of silence of a story that remains hidden.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the end of April 2021 at the

Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is the largest documentary festival in North America. The event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 27th edition of the festival took place online throughout May and June ...

2021 in

Toronto, Canada Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anchor ...

. The film was released commercially on June 2, 2022, in Guatemalan theaters. It had a limited release on February 10, 2023, in Mexican theaters.

Accolades

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Silence of the Mole, The 2021 films 2021 documentary films Guatemalan documentary films 2020s Spanish-language films Documentaries about politics 2021 directorial debut films