Martín (Hache) (1997)

19-year-old Argentina Martin has a nearly fatal drug overdose. After that his mother sends him to Madrid, where his film director father (also called Martin) lives with his new much younger lover Alicia and bisexual actor friend Dante.

Director:

Adolfo Aristarain

Writers:

Adolfo Aristarain, Kathy Saavedra

Stars:

Federico Luppi, Juan Diego Botto, Eusebio Poncela

18 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Federico Luppi	...	Martín
Juan Diego Botto	...	Hache
Eusebio Poncela	...	Dante
Cecilia Roth	...	Alicia
Ana María Picchio	...	Blanca (as Ana Maria Picchio)
Sancho Gracia	...	José M.ª Navarro
José María Sacristán	...	Schauve (as José M. Sacristán)
Will More	...	Coracero (as Joaquin A. Colmenares)
Ángel Amorós	...	Productor Teatro (as Angel Amoros)
Kojun Notsu	...	Joven Oriental
Esther Herrera	...	Niña Andrógina
Marisa Cabezón	...	Mujer Espejo (as Marisa Cabezon)
Enrique Liporace	...	Migue
Claudia Gallegos	...	Lea
Leonora Balcarce	...	Nadia

Storyline

19-year-old Argentina Martin has a nearly fatal drug overdose. After that his mother sends him to Madrid, where his film director father (also called Martin) lives with his new much younger lover Alicia and bisexual actor friend Dante.

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Plot Keywords:

argentinian abroad | two word title | father son relationship | male name in title | older woman younger man kiss | 

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Taglines:

No quiere trabajar. No quiere estudiar. No es un vago. Quiere ser libre.

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Genres:

Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Eusebio Poncela and Cecilia Roth had previously acted together in Arrebato (1979) almost 20 years before this movie was made.

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Quotes

Martín: Your country is your friends, and that's what you really miss.

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Soundtracks

Something for Kenny
Written by Elmo Hope
Performed by Elmo Hope Trio

User Reviews

Why is growing-up such a pain?

Heche (which means letter H) is a nineteen year old boy that nobody wants. After his parents' divorce, his mother's got a new life in Argentina, and there's no place for him. After he survives an 'accident' that is believed by everyone as an attempted suicide, his mother asks his father to take care of him. His father agrees, even if he still does not think he has a place for his son. Only his father's woman and his best friend, an homosexual drug addict, show affection for this boy who is lost and can't find a way to really grow up and become independent.

Being raised in a family of people who flew Argentina before I was born, I was used, kind of, to the heavy Argentinian accent that the actors have, Federico Luppi especially. However, I agree it might be difficult for other Spanish speaking people who are used to a more 'orthodox' Spanish to understand parts of the dialogs, which is a shame. Dialogues are what makes this film so interesting and touching. The things that are said contrast with the things that remained unsaid, and you can only imagine by reading the character's eyes. Alicia, for example, is almost always laughing and having fun, but her eyes are dark, worried. Her happiness is just a mask she wears to avoid realize how much she feels bad about what she is missing for, a real family, with children. She only tells Hache about that, she wishes she were his mother. Hache apparently is resigned to being a nuisance for his parents, but he wants to escape this situation by living alone, even though he's not ready yet. He uses drugs and only his father's best friend manages to keep him away from danger.

The two main actors were great. Federico Luppi's portrayal of a father who is very disappointed for his son's way of life was so real I wanted to kick him! Juan Diego Botto was perfect, too. You could think he was portraying himself. I wonder if it's a pity he lives in Spain and his works are not known across the Atlantic Ocean, nor east of the Pirineos.

Details

Country:

Spain Argentina

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

17 April 1997 (Argentina)

Also Known As:

Martín (Hache)

Filming Locations:

Mojácar, Almería, Andalucía, Spain

Box Office

Budget:

ESP200,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

A.V.H. San Luis, Adolfo Aristarain, Canal+ España

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1