The Official Story (1985)
"La historia oficial" (original title)

After the end of the Dirty War, a high school teacher sets out to find out who the mother of her adopted daughter is.

Director:

Luis Puenzo

Writers:

Aída Bortnik, Luis Puenzo

Stars:

Héctor Alterio, Norma Aleandro, Chunchuna Villafañe

Won 1 Oscar. Another 24 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Héctor Alterio	...	Roberto
Norma Aleandro	...	Alicia
Chunchuna Villafañe	...	Ana
Hugo Arana	...	Enrique
Guillermo Battaglia	...	Jose
Chela Ruíz	...	Sara
Patricio Contreras	...	Benitez
María Luisa Robledo	...	Nata
Aníbal Morixe	...	Miller
Jorge Petraglia	...	Macci
Analia Castro	...	Gaby
Daniel Lago	...	Dante
Augusto Larreta	...	General
Laura Palmucci	...	Rosa
Leal Rey	...	Cura

Storyline

Alicia Marnet de Ibáñez is a high school history professor and a well-to-do housewife in Buenos Aires, circa 1983, after the fall of the "junta militar" that had taken over the government since 1976. She has a husband, Roberto, who is a succesful lawyer and a five-year-old adopted daughter.

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Plot Keywords:

adopted daughter | school | book | military coup | teacher | 

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Taglines:

Our Moving Story

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Genres:

Drama | History | War

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Argentina

Language:

Spanish English

Release Date:

8 November 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Official Story

Filming Locations:

Argentina

Company Credits

Production Co:

Historias Cinematograficas Cinemania, Progress Communications

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Second Argentina's movie Golden Globe Winner for Best Foreign Film in 1986.

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Quotes

Ana: [to Roberto] Gaby is wonderful. She says I'm the "divided" friend.
Alicia: [laughing] She can't pronounce devoted. She loves the word and uses it constantly.
Roberto: Will you be staying?
Ana: I don't know yet.
Roberto: You're looking good. I never saw you in a skirt before. Europe was good for you, wasn't it? It seems to have polished up your edges.

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Connections

Featured in The 58th Annual Academy Awards (1986)

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Soundtracks

"El pais del nome acuerdo"
Written by María Elena Walsh
Sung by Analia Castro

User Reviews

Hard to forget

"Even though we try, the truth brings us to tears"... I watched "La historia oficial" more than 10 times, and weep the 10 of them. One can say that it's a dark, slow movie. Most Latin films are. This one is not the exception, therefore we must understand it's style, not popular around the world. However, great pictures can be made under this style, even greater that many other American movies of the same topic. Luis Puenzo's portrait of a post dictatorship family is the best example of this. Hector Alterio and Norma Aleandro are incredible, as mother and father to an adopted child of unknown past. As the truth starts to pop up after the fall of the cruel and pagan military government, Alicia (Norma) starts investigating what happened to her daughter's real parents. As she goes on searching for the truth, she realizes that his husband, a former military officer, knew lots of the answers beforehand. The movie fairly got the Oscar and Norma Aleandro jumped into fame winning at Cannes. Luis Puenzo also went on to Hollywood. However, he never adopted to the American style, and "La Historia Oficial" remains as his best movie. A must see in Latin history.