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

The song that Gaby sings is call "En el país de Nomeacuerdo", a famous childhood song from Argentina, composed by 'María Elena Walsh (I)'.

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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

The human face of political cinema

The Official Story is an excellent example of how to mix political cinema with human drama, avoiding agitprop or crude sloganeering to put a human face on the issue of Argentina's disappeared - in particular the children taken away from undesirables and given to well-connected families who won't ask any questions. When one well-heeled adopted mother learns of this and begins to suspect that her adopted daughter may be one of those children, rather than turn into a sermon the film focuses on her own fears as she tries to disprove the possibility until ultimately she is in the same uncertain hell as the families of the disappeared - she can suspect, but she can never truly know.

Although some of the devices may seem a little too schematic - she's a history teacher who depends solely on the 'verifiable' official version of her country's history - it wears them lightly and is often extremely powerful. The Best Foreign Film Oscar has a rather dubious history, but this is definitely one of the more deserving winners.