Sidewalls (2011)
"Medianeras" (original title)

Martín and Mariana are slightly damaged people who live in buildings just opposite one another. While they often don't notice each other, separation might be the very thing that brings them together.

Director:

Gustavo Taretto

Writer:

Gustavo Taretto (screenplay)

Stars:

Javier Drolas, Pilar López de Ayala, Inés Efron

3 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview:
Javier Drolas	...	Martín
Pilar López de Ayala	...	Mariana
Inés Efron	...	Ana
Adrián Navarro	...	Lucas
Rafael Ferro	...	Rafa
Carla Peterson	...	Marcela
Jorge Lanata	...	Médico
Alan Pauls	...	Exnovio Mariana
Romina Paula	...	Exnovia Martín

Storyline

Martín and Mariana are slightly damaged people who live in buildings just opposite one another. While they often don't notice each other, separation might be the very thing that brings them together.

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Plot Keywords:

building | buenos aires argentina | mannequin | stairs | internet | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Argentina Spain Germany

Language:

Spanish French English

Release Date:

26 October 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sidewalls

Filming Locations:

Buenos Aires, Federal District, Argentina

Box Office

Budget:

$11,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$1,304 (USA) (28 October 2011)

Gross:

$1,734 (USA) (28 October 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Eddie Saeta S.A., Instituto Nacional de Cine y Artes Audiovisuales (INCAA), Pandora Filmproduktion

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Martín: The Internet brings me closer to the world, but further from life.

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Connections

References Star Wars (1977)

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Soundtracks

"True Love Will Find You In The End"
Written by Daniel Johnston
Performed by Daniel Johnston

User Reviews

Charming and cinematically beautiful

In an effort to learn Spanish, I've been watching a lot of Spanish- language movies, and not worrying too much about the quality. It was nice, finally, to watch one that is quite well done. This little Argentinean, romantic comedy is philosophical, charming, and visually beautiful.

Martin (Javier Drolas), an agoraphobic website designer and Mariana (Pilar Lopez de Ayala), an underemployed architect, live on the same street in Buenos Aires. Both are depressed and lonely. As both go through a series of futile dates, we come to see that they would be perfect for each other, but of course, the odds of the two of them meeting in such a huge city are not good. The city has ways of putting up barriers between people, and the theme of the film is that successfully making a life in such a place requires physically and mentally breaking through those barriers.

Meanwhile, the camera lingers on the skyline and the individual buildings of Buenos Aires, gray and inhuman. The variety of buildings is endless, and many have blank, windowless sidewalls, called medianeras. These blank spaces are used for billboards, an ugly alternative to what could have been light-bringing windows, and many apartment- dwellers rebel by chipping through the concrete to place unauthorized windows.

Despite the urban philosophizing and beautiful cinematography, "Medianeras" does not demand to be taken too seriously. It's a fun, optimistic, romantic comedy which declares that, as one of the songs in the film puts it, "true love will find you in the end." Amen to that.