''Private Lives'' ( es, Vidas privadas, links=no) is a 2001 Argentine-Spanish melodrama film directed by

Fito Páez Rodolfo Páez Ávalos, popularly known as Fito Páez (; born 13 March 1963), is an Argentine popular rock and roll pianist, lyricist, singer-songwriter and film director. Biography Early career Paez was born in Rosario, Santa Fe Province; ...

(in his directorial debut feature) from a screenplay he co-wrote with

Alan Pauls Alan Pauls (born 22 April 1959 in Buenos Aires) is an Argentine writer, literary critic and screenwriter. An early essay he did on ''Betrayed by Rita Hayworth'' by Manuel Puig is said to show his interest in him as an "experimental writer." Althoug ...

. It stars

Cecilia Roth Cecilia Edith Rotenberg Gutkin better known as Cecilia Roth (; born August 8, 1956) is an Argentine actress. She is the winner of two Goya Awards and a European Film Award. She is known for being an " Almodóvar girl" and the "muse" of Fito P ...

and

Gael García Bernal Gael García Bernal (; born 30 November 1978) is a Mexican actor and producer. He is best known for his performances in the films '' Bad Education'', '' The Motorcycle Diaries'', ''Amores perros'', ''Y tu mamá también'', ''Babel'', '' Coco'', ...

Plot

Exiled in Madrid, emotionally repressed Carmen Uranga returns to

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

to visit her ailing father, becoming acquainted with

male prostitute Male prostitution is the act or practice of men providing sexual services in return for payment. It is a form of sex work. Although clients can be of any gender, the vast majority are older males looking to fulfill their sexual needs. Male pro ...

Gustavo, whom she hires in order to satisfy her

paraphilia Paraphilia (previously known as sexual perversion and sexual deviation) is the experience of intense sexual arousal to atypical objects, situations, fantasies, behaviors, or individuals. It has also been defined as sexual interest in anything ot ...

, a strange case of phonophilia, eliciting suspicion from her younger sister Ana.

Cast

Production

Back to when Páez first thought about shooting the film, he originally targeted

Marisa Paredes María Luisa Paredes Bartolomé (born 3 April 1946), known professionally as Marisa Paredes, is a Spanish actress. Biography Paredes began acting in 1960 film, '' 091 Policia al Habla'' (''091, Police Speaking!'') She became a teen idol across ...

and

Juan Diego Botto Juan Diego Botto Rota (born 29 August 1975) is an Argentine-Spanish film, stage and television actor. Born in Argentina, he moved to Spain together with his mother (the actress and acting coach Cristina Rota) in 1978. Following early film appe ...

to star in the main roles eventually played by Roth and García Bernal. The film is an Argentine-Spanish co-production by Circo Beat and Mate Production, with the participation of Vía Digital. It was shot in

Release

The film was presented in the 'New Directors' section of the 49th

San Sebastián International Film Festival The San Sebastián International Film Festival ( SSIFF; es, Festival Internacional de San Sebastián, eu, Donostia Zinemaldia) is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spanish city of Donostia-San Sebastián in September, in th ...

in September 2001. It was released theatrically in Spain on 2 November 2001 and in Argentina on 25 April 2002.

Reception

David Rooney of ''

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), ...

'' considered the film to display "risible dramatic material" and advised Páez to best "hang onto his day job". Casimiro Torreiro of ''

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 ...

'' assessed that the film wrecks because of several reasons, including "clumsy writing", with "too many buts that undermine the credibility" of the film. The review in ''

La Nación ''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina. Its motto is: "''La Nac ...

'' gave ''Private Lives'' a 'so-so' rating, writing that the "irregular, chaotic, frayed" film "alternates between some passages of great dramatic power and others that are dispensable". Jorge de Cominges of ''

Fotogramas ''Fotogramas'' is Spanish digital and print film magazine which has been in circulation since 1946. It is one of the early film magazines in Spain. History Founded in Barcelona, it was first published on 15 November 1946 by Antonio Nadal-Rodó a ...

'' rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, citing the performances by García Bernal and Villafañe and as the best things about the film, while pointing out at the absence of a final climax as a negative point.

Accolades

, - , , , 51st

Silver Condor Award The Argentine Film Critics Association ( es, Asociación de Cronistas Cinematográficos de la Argentina) is an organization of Argentine-based journalists and correspondents. The association presents the ''Silver Condor Awards'' (''Premios Cóndor ...

s , , Best Supporting Actress , , Chunchuna Villafañe , , , ,

References

Argentine drama films Spanish-language drama films 2000s Spanish-language films 2000s psychological drama films 2000s Argentine films 2000s Spanish films Films shot in Buenos Aires Films set in Buenos Aires Films about male prostitution 2001 directorial debut films Melodrama films Spanish psychological drama films {{authority control