A Useful Life (2010)
"La vida útil" (original title)

A movie-theater employee adjusts to a new life after the cinema he worked at for over 25 years is forced to shut down.

Director:

Federico Veiroj

Writers:

Inés Bortagaray, Gonzalo Delgado,

Stars:

Jorge Jellinek, Manuel Martinez Carril, Paola Venditto

6 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Jorge Jellinek	...	Jorge
Manuel Martinez Carril	...	Martínez
Paola Venditto	...	Paola

Storyline

A movie-theater employee adjusts to a new life after the cinema he worked at for over 25 years is forced to shut down.

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Plot Keywords:

cinema | movie theater | montevideo uruguay | cinematheque

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Uruguay Spain

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

14 January 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Useful Life

Filming Locations:

Montevideo, Uruguay

Box Office

Budget:

$350,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinekdoque, Mediapro, Versátil Cinema

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min 67 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

User Reviews

An excellent and original work of art and an sincere homage to film love

In black and white, with non professional actors, and a minimal story with slow pace, it might seem another boring and pretentious experimental work. Quite the contrary it's a fascinating, melancholic hilarious and delicate testimony of some people's true love to cinema. People that work all their lives in film archives and cinemateques,and that dedicate their existence to preserve films, exhibit them and educate audiences, have never been better reflected in a movie. Going to in counter-current with the trivialization of the media and dominating pop culture full of vacuous digital "special effects", this work appeals to real "special affects" in order to introduce us to the daily work in the uruguayan Cinemateque, one of the most respected of the continent. It's not a documentary, although at moments it might feel better than one in approaching it's characters, most of them people who really work at the cinemateque or in the case of Jorge who are film critics, not actors. The surprise comes at the second part of the film, when reality and fantasy overlap and when the main character makes a strange and illuminating voyage through the streets of Montevideo in search of love and to reinvent himself through cinema. A precious jewel recommended only to those with sensibility and intelligence to appreciate this sincere declaration of love.