Cenizas del paraíso (1997)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Marcelo Piñeyro

Writers:

Aída Bortnik (writer)
Marcelo Piñeyro (writer)

Release Date:

7 August 1997 (Argentina)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Three siblings, one woman, one destiny

Plot:

A judge falls from the roof of the Federal Courthouse. A woman is murdered. Between them and the three...

Plot Keywords:

Judge | Political Corruption | Suspicion | Corruption | Nonlinear Timeline

Awards:

7 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Héctor Alterio	...	Judge Costa Makantasis
Cecilia Roth	...	Juez Beatriz Teller
Leonardo Sbaraglia	...	Pablo Makantasis
Daniel Kuzniecka	...	Nicolás Makantasis
Leticia Brédice	...	Ana Muro
Alejo García Pintos	...	Yeti
Nicolás Abeles	...	Alejandro Makantasis
Jorge Marrale	...	Francisco Muro
Chela Ruíz	...	Isabel Güemes
Rita Cortese	...	Mirta
Horacio Roca	...	Iriarte
Mónica Scapparone	...	Carolina Miranda
María Fiorentino	...	Hilda
Emilio Bardi	...	Méndez
José María Monje	...	Guard Cacho

Also Known As:

Ashes from Paradise (USA)
Paradise Ashes (International: English title)

Runtime:

116 min

Country:

Argentina

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Hong Kong:IIB | Mexico:C | Peru:14 | Poland:15 | South Africa:18 | Spain:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Buenos Aires, Federal District, Argentina

Company:

Artear

Trivia:

Argentina's official submission for the 1997 Oscar Awards, Foreign Language film category.

Soundtrack:

What I Got

Beautifully acted crime-thriller with plenty of surprises

Cenizas del Paraiso is an aptly-named crime-thriller with just the right amount of intrigue, romance, action and pathos. Besides the compelling direction and excellent acting, I was especially impressed by how the story insinuated certain disturbing circumstances without being soap-opera vulgar about them. The story and direction suggest an even more intriguing backstory than is overtly presented. Hector Alterio is an amazingly versatile and charismatic actor and I would see any film of his.

Regarding the previous reviewer's comment on Argentine cinema being used primarily as a political tool, among the Argentine films I've seen, many have little or no political themes. Cenizas del Paraiso does indeed involve economic and political corruption and how it can infect other institutions. In any case, one would hope that any country with a history of horrendous political and human rights abuses would evolve to the point where the arts and press are free enough to expose and alert the people to the dangers of such abuses. American cinema produces and exports films about corruption in America; it is a testimony to the existence of democracy in Argentina that it is able to do so about Argentina. That said, this film is primarily a psychological crime drama with a subplot which includes corruption.