‘Chile ‘76’ Review – A Quietly Dark And Beautiful Drama

Directed By: Manuela Martelli

Starring: Aline Kuppenheim, Nicolas Sepulveda, Hugo Medina

Plot Summary: Set during the early days of Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship, Chile ’76 builds from a quiet character study to a gripping suspense thriller as it explores one woman’s precarious flirtation with political engagement. Carmen (Aline Kuppenheim) leads a sheltered upper-middle-class existence. The story unfolds as she heads to her summer house in the off-season to supervise its renovation, where her husband, children, and grandchildren visit on and off, bringing reminders of the world beyond.

Director Manuela Martelli’s film Chile ’76 is billed as a thriller with social and political overtones. In lesser creative hands, that’s all it would have been. However, we thankfully get a beautifully layered drama, which explores the human condition, class and the universal commonalities we all share. The film brilliantly opens with Carmen (Aline Kuppenheim), a wealthy woman, having paint mixed for her home refresh. The whirling of the mixer nearly, but not totally, drowns out the screams of a woman on the streets. Carmen has the freedom that her wealth and social standing afford her to feign concern, but ultimately it doesn’t touch her life of ease and privilege.

While the rest of the region is struggling with life and death problems, Carmen has been sheltered in her bubble, merely wanting to idle her time away. It’s only when she is tasked with harboring and taking care of a young man that she finally breaks out of her complacency. This makes for a rich template for not only highly interesting socio-political themes but also a wealth of emotional complexities. We as an audience truly go on a journey with Carmen, who is a bored housewife caught up in something so much bigger than herself. The situation she finds herself in rekindles her time as nurse, which seemingly snaps into action like muscle memory.

Seeing this tender side peeled back is a stark cry from the beginning of the movie, in which she was figuratively and literally numb to screams in the street. Chile ’76 never holds your hand through the political aspects of the time period, yet one never feels alienated by this fact, even if you don’t happen to be familiar with the regional politics of the time. It’s more about the universal feelings that cut through the heavier socio-political themes.

While it is difficult to classify this as a thriller in the strictest sense, Martelli does craft some razor-sharp suspense in the vein of Hitchcock. This is employed with a less-is-more approach that is incredibly effective. Mundane scenes like a conversation in a restaurant become tense, as the weight of Carmen’s actions are slowly being felt. From a technical standpoint Chile ’76 is quite remarkable. Visually, the filmmakers are very smart with how they use color and shots to get the most atmosphere and emotion out of any given scene. The soundscapes and score also go a long way to further tie together this tragic tale.

Actress Aline Kuppenheim truly shows her depth and range in the vital role of Carmen. There is something icy and stoic in her performance. However, it’s not only how she delivers lines, but it’s the inner workings of her mind shown on her face. As the literal sea crashes with amazing force, so too does Kuppenheim internally. While everyone in this movie is outstanding, this is Kuppenheim’s film, and she makes every second work with ease.

Chile ’76 is not a film that will connect with casual film goers. It is slow, and even the thriller elements are handled with a softer touch. Still, if you are looking for a gut wrenching, quietly dark and beautiful drama, then you will find much to love about this film.

Chile ’76 is currently playing in select theaters courtesy of Kino Lorber with further expansion in the coming weeks.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1ppx-ARSDM]