Chronicle of an Escape (2006) User Reviews

Recollections of a Dark Period

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 25 December 2008]

In 1977, the goalkeeper of the Almagro team Claudio Tamburrini (Rodrigo de la Serna) is illegally kidnapped from his home, arrested by the government forces and sent blindfolded to Sere Mansion, a clandestine detention center. His acquaintance Tano (Martín Urruty), who had been tortured for a long period, had falsely accused Claudio of being a revolutionary. Along the months, Claudio is kept nude and handcuffed together with the prisoners El Gallego (Lautaro Delgado), El Vasco (Matías Marmorato) and Guillermo Fernández (Nazareno Casero) and submitted to all sort of humiliations and tortures, until the night they decide to escape from their imprisonment in the old mansion.

The dramatic "Crónica de una Fuga" is a true recollection of a dark period of dictatorship in South America sponsored by USA to fight the communism, more specifically in Argentina. The story is very well acted but limited to the situation of Claudio and the other three prisoners in the Sere Mansion and their escape. However it omits, for example, that Tano and the other prisoners have been certainly dropped airborne from an Air Force airplane (the Jeep indicates Air Force Argentine, and this was a common practice in the dictatorship period). My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Crônica de uma Fuga" ("Chronicle of an Escape")

Good story about a bad time

[nicolas-prandi · 8/10 · 21 May 2011]

Cronica de una Fuga deals with true events in the history of Argentina during the "dirty war" of the seventies. These events having to do with the government, make up a very dark period in the country's history and do not offer much more than sad memories. The movie concentrates on the personal experience of Claudio, who was apprehended by agents and placed in a house together with many more kidnapped men. Caetano, through the use of different cinematographic techniques, makes it clear that the men are seen as inferior and are treated horribly. However, the movie provides the audience with much hope as Claudio strives to survive and does not give up whatever the circumstances may be around him. Moreover, team work which the prisoners develop as they are kept in the house, speaks strongly for the need of people to come together when times get tough. The movie overall is a good one as it concentrates on a positive aspect in the middle of such a negative situation. It is tough to make a movie about this dark time period and have it be an uplifting story in the end.

I wish I didn't know anything about the actual events or the film before I saw it, it would have played better

[dbborroughs · 6/10 · 12 January 2008]

I caught this film on IFC in Theaters on cable.

True story of what happened in Argentina in 1977 when a goalie on a soccer team was kidnapped by the secret police and thrown into a secret prison and tortured for information he didn't have.

Good story of imprisonment and escape by several young men being held and tortured by the military government. The early portion of the film is a terrifying portrait of a government out of control and how in the process it leaves everyone feeling frightened (I will refrain from making Bush comparisons). Once in the prison, actually a secluded old house, we watch as the men there are repeatedly tortured for information concerning a terrorist attack. Its clear from many conversations that the captors want names even though as one prisoner says he has no names to give them. Its a damning portrait of the uselessness of torture, since its clear you may just get a confession to make the pain stop. Unfortunately there is a sameness to it all that grows tiresome, it wears away the tension from the situation. I'm sure the tension never went away from the men being held but for me sitting in my seat watching I just wanted them to get on with it.

The final portion of the film is the actual escape. Its a good piece of film making however there isn't as much fear as there should be and thats to do with the title of the film (it tells us what happens), the opening text (which tells us how we know the story) and in my case the marketing and reviews, which gave away way too much information.(and in all fairness I've probably said too much myself). I wish I didn't know what I had been told about and by the film so that the final portion of the film would have played so much tenser.

6 out of 10 (though add a few more if you manage not to know anything about the actual events)

Picture of a century

[Vincentiu · 1 July 2010]

A great movie. About the pain of truth and the fight against a regime. About the hope and the sin. About democracy and fear.All is perfect. Actors, lights, screenplay. Slice by slice, the movie becomes a testimony. Not about a piece of Argentina history but about a reality in which many of us, actors, victims, silhouettes, are crumbs. The story is basic. The scenes are stone rain. The end is not happy, not heroic. But saint full. A film about every regime for who democratic values are fiction. About the power and not authority. About lies and dark illusion. About limits and resistance. About Albania of Enver Hodja or Cambodgia of Pol Pot. Or, maybe, Belarus of Lukashenko. A lesson. About the force to be more than a mask, number or victim. And a homage to the people for who the moral victory is more important than all prizes. Must see! Foe understand.

A taut psychological thriller

[saturnalia33 · 9/10 · 28 March 2007]

Buenos Aires 1977 tells the true story of four men who narrowly escaped death at the hands of a military death squad during the Argentinean dirty war in the late 1970s.

The Dirty War is the name given to the state-sponsored violence against citizens mostly carried out between 1976 and 1983 by Jorge Rafael Videla's military government in Argentina during what was called by the dictatorship the "National Reorganization Process" or what the modern world calls "genocide".

The film follows Claudio Tamburrini, a goal keeper for a minor league football team, who was forcefully kidnapped by members of the Argentine secret military police.

He is taken to a detention center known as Sere Mansion which is an old dilapidated house in a suburban neighbourhood on the suspicion he's an anti-government terrorist.

Tamburrini is not alone and his fellow abductees are frequently tortured by the jailers for information he doesn't have because he was never a political activist.

After four months of imprisonment, and many sessions of torture, Tamburrini and his fellow captives make a break for freedom.

It is a gripping film throughout with bleak filming adding depth to the situation making it a taut psychological thriller especially because you are aware that this actually happened. The camera work and acting immerse the viewer into the mundane but arduous life that these innocent prisoners lead right through to the climatic finale.

According to the Nunca Más report issued by the National Commission on the Disappearance of Persons (CONADEP) in 1984, about 9,000 people were "disappeared" between 1976 and 1983. Estimates by human rights organisations place the number at closer to 30,000.

Buenos Aires 1977 is a deeply moving and involving film worth a trip to the cinema for an education on both how to shoot this kind of film and a brief education about the not-so-distant Dirty War of Argentina.

Rebels in a fascist regime.

[deloudelouvain · 7/10 · 2 August 2018]

I can't say I watched alot of Argentinian movies but this one is certainly worth a watch. Also because the movie is based on actual events, it made it even more captivating and interesting to watch. The seventies, it's actually not that long time ago, were not really good times in Argentina if you had the idea of criticizing the actual regime. The military dictatorship of that time was systematically eliminating dissidents to the regime. In this story, that is sometimes hard to watch, we witness the kidnapping and interrogations of some alleged 'Desaparecidos'. It was not a good time to have 'lefties' ideas. The acting was very good, as it looked all very real and disgusting. A good movie from Israel Adrián Caetano. I will look for more of his movies.

An Inside View of Political Detainees

[gradyharp · 9/10 · 25 August 2008]

One of the aspects of this excellent film from Argentina is the disturbing fact that it is based on actual events. Director Israel Adrián Caetano (with Esteban Student and Julian Loyola) created the screenplay from the main character's memoir - 'Pase libre' by Claudio Tamburrini - and in doing so bring a sense of immediacy and unfiltered truth to this tale of the 1977 military dictatorship in Argentina during the time of the 'Desaparecidos' or terminal evacuation/elimination of dissidents to the regime.

CHRONICLE OF AN ESCAPE (Crónica de una fuga) relates the capture of soccer goalie Claudio Tamburrini (Rodrigo de la Serna, remembered for his magnetic portrayal of Alberto in 'The Motorcycle Diaries') during a soccer game in 1977 when he was abducted, blindfolded, and taken to a house of detention as a suspected revolutionary. Claudio is beaten, interrogated, starved, and forced to live nude, blindfolded and in handcuffs chained to his palette along with other detainees - Guillermo Fernández (Nazareno Casero), El Gallego (Lautaro Delgado), El Vasco (Matías Marmorato) and El Tano (Martín Urruty). Each of the detainees is repeatedly tortured and deprived of the 'necessities' of living until after four months the group decides to escape. The tension of their ingenious escape provides the film with a tense and riveting closure, and at the end of the film the destinies of each of the detainees is revealed.

Though the world knows some of the details of the military junta in Argentina that lasted from 1976 to 1985, observing the calamity in the form of real individuals who suffered pleads the case for understanding the atrocities better than simply reading media accounts. The manner in which Caetano directs his superb cast is enhanced by the extraordinary cinematography of Julián Apezteguía and the moody and creatively subtle musical score by Iván Wyszogrod. The cast is uniformly excellent: though the men who play the evil torturers have not been named in this review they are all very strong actors. This is a tough movie to watch and the audience should be aware that the prisoners appear in the nude throughout the film (if that is a problem for some viewers). In Spanish with English subtitles. Very strongly recommended, especially in this time when the concept of 'detainees' is so very much in the public eye once again! Grady Harp

Argentina will get it's second Oscar

[otroale · 9/10 · 25 April 2006]

Yes, this time we can be sure. This movie will bring home the first award since "la historia Oficial". But the great thing about this movie is that it does not need any award to prove how great it is. When you have some great performances, specially from the best south-American actor of his generation, Rodrigo de la Serna (Diarios de Motocicleta), and a director who has achieved his most mature work, and all of this to tell a story so sad, deep, breathtaking and energetic, you can't go wrong. I was lucky enough as to see this film on a preview, so this is the first vote it receives at the IMDb. But believe me, this movie has future of top 250. Not that it needs it, anyway. Finally, if you are from Argentina, and you think that we have had enough with this type of stories, think of all the missing tales similar to this one, that we'll never know of. They are at least 30.000. So we need to continue filming and writing about the seventies, until one day we'll be able to say. "This won't happen again"

Insighful.

[Janus2006 · 10/10 · 27 July 2006]

"Crónica de una Fuga" is not only an objective journey through Argentina's shady past, but also an engaging thriller that will keep you at the edge of your seat.

Uruguayan director Adrian Caetano, proves himself to be on of the leading filmmakers among the flourishing Argentinean film industry. The director of "Bolivia" and "Un Oso Rojo" is very precise when it comes to dialogues, and has an ability to acknowledge violence only by showing its imminence -the most powerful and cruel moments are achieved by creating a meticulous balance with the sound fields-.

It is also worth mentioning Rodrigo de la Serna's performance, who after working opposite to Gael Garcia Bernal in "Motorcycle Diaries" managed to establish himself as one of the most talented Latin American actor of his generation.

Set to be released around Jan. 2007, "Cronica" is an insightful thriller that should not be missed.

Argentinian Cinema : A meaningful but rather slow film. ! ! !

[FilmCriticLalitRao · 4/10 · 24 August 2008]

What happened in Argentina in late 1970s is a matter of great shame.It was a time of universal sorrow as many ordinary Argentinians were troubled,harassed,persecuted and killed by roguish military regime which had absolute power.Argentinian film director Israel Adrian Caetano has depicted some of these unimaginable sufferings in his award winning film "Crónica De Una Fuga".He has based his film on four important protagonists who are imprisoned at a secret location on baseless charges.Buenos Aires 1977,is a name given to these people's hardships.As there is an escape involved,it might be said that "Buenos Aires 1977" keeps veering from drama to thriller.The drama part of this film is convincing as we get a chance to be a part of human suffering.it has been shown without resorting to a lot of striking scenes of suffering.It is in the thriller part that much of the film's action is located.As the drama part is rather slow,it is being felt that thriller part has handled pressures very well.Buenos AIRES 1977 is a nice film for those people who believe that the dignity of ordinary human beings should be preserved at any cost.

Torture Regime

[tedg · 25 May 2009]

Let's see. An American nation is threatened by terrorists. For seven years, the government is headed by people who believe that extraconstitutional measures are required. They detain people based on suspicion (often false accusations by enemies) and torture them because they MUST know something. These are specially created places outside the normal criminal system. It is funded and approved from the White House in the name of combating out a global movement, using soldiers and "contractors."

I've been watching movies based on this period. This is one made by Argentines, which adds something. Though the film-making is not particularly effective, it adds a genuine patina. What's disappointing about this is that though we get that the bad guys are genuinely evil men, we don't get the visceral impact of what happened. Really happened.

Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.

A VERY GOOD WATCH !!

[postsenthil · 8/10 · 27 October 2019]

This Argentinian movie set in the 1970s presents the real life story of four prisoners who manage a successful escape from their military junta captors during the Dirty War era in Argentina. The Dirty War era was a dark and infamous period in the history of Argentina when the right wing military government was responsible for the disappearance of several thousands - some estimates put the number at about 30,000 - of Argentinians on the pretext that they were suspected left wing terrorists.

This movie retells the real life story of Claudio Tamburrini and three of his fellow prisoners who manage to escape from a secret detention center. Claudio is a goalkeeper in a minor league soccer team and is abducted by the military secret police who suspect him to be a leftist terrorist. Their suspicion is merely based on the questionable testimony of another captive and they swoop down on an unsuspecting Claudio at his residence. Before Claudio could even grapple with the happenings, he is whisked away to a desolate detention center in a suburb where he is held as a blindfolded captive for several months along with others without any due process. The captives are put through a daily rigour of sadistic violence and humiliation in the name of interrogation by their captors who tend to play dangerous mindgames with the hapless captives. This movie is based on the autobiographical account by Claudio with further inputs from his fellow escapee Guillermo who leads their audacious escape on a stormy night.

The focus in the movie is on the daily ordeals faced by the captives and the unflinching cruelty of the thugs of the junta who inflict unspeakable horrors on them. The movie has a dark and foreboding tone throughout to provide a realistic edge to the happenings with just tiny flecks of rooted situational humour and the final act of escape is set as a thriller, albeit, sans any heightened drama. However, the movie does not bother acquainting the viewers with the social context to the unfolding events. Perhaps, this is one reason why there is a sense of something amiss while watching the movie.

Nevertheless, this competently acted movie is successful in presenting a very real account of the chilling, visceral torture meted out to the captives without being overtly gruesome and has a gripping and taut narrative which keeps the viewer tense throughout.

Mechanic of torture.

[searchanddestroy-1 · 9/10 · 9 September 2020]

That's the best movie about Argentina dictatorship that I have seen since GARAGE OLIMPO, back in 2001. There was COMPANEROS of course, but I prefered this one. Any movie buff could thnk about L'AVEU, the Costa Gavras masterpiece. The Argentinian government at this time hired not even militaries but hoodlums to execute the dirty work, as French De Gaulle's henchmen did during Algerian war, against OAS. But this bunch of goons were wiped out by former elite paratroopers of the OAS, in Algiers, before OAS was finally dismantled. In Argentina, only war d defeat in Falklands made this dictatorship eventually collapse. Back to tis feature, it is an awesome and painful piece of work, believe me, and also a powerful character study, depressing, gloomy. But it deserves to be seen to fully understand things that were not always fully explained. Not for all audiences.

for not ignore

[Kirpianuscus · 26 March 2017]

an Argentinian page of history. new piece from Pinochet regime. admirable performances. inspired script. and a story of survive. result - a remarkable film. but, more important, a realistic fresco of the XX century. because it is a film about dictatorship. about the brutal power for intimidate and control and see the other only as tool of own interest. and this is the motif for who "Chronicle of an Escape" is a great movie. for the fascinating way to describe the essence of human resistance. for the manner to suggest the heart of every dictatorship. for the wise science to remind - do not ignore the legacy of the last century. this is all. and the basic point for a real useful lesson of history.