Review XCIV - No

Review XCIV
No (2012)

Hello folks! I reach out to everyone in a better mood than last time after having a nice Christmas dinner - though it really doesn't feel like the holidays, for whatever reason. Either way, I'm back and I'm here to review a film that I couldn't find back in 2012 when I was trying to review all the foreign films nominated. I also met someone from the country in question in the film and, well, what can I say? I'm a stalker in a sense, so I figured, hey, let's check it out! The film is, of course, Pablo Larrain's No starring Gael García Bernal, Alfredo Castro, Antonia Zegers, and Néstor Cantillana. But first, let's talk history briefly. I read about Pinochet's regime on wikipedia, so take it as you will.

President Allende was elected in 1970. He was a Marxist and, from what I read, Allende had issues governing, leading to an inflation of 300 percent. The United States also played a role in discrediting Allende given his left-wing status. In 1973, there was a coup d'état, and Chile ended up having Augusto Pinochet as their leader. While the United States was initially thrilled with having a more right-winged leader, it would result in a dictatorship that would last until 1990.

Pinochet was not any better in handling Chile's problems. Poverty rose to, I believe it was 33% or 36%, and millions who resisted the regime went unaccounted for. After international pressure, a referendum, or plebiscite, was planned for 1988 in which it would be determined whether or not Pinochet would rule the country for another eight years. A month prior to the election, the "si" campaign and "no" campaign were each given fifteen minutes of air time to help citizens choose which option was best for them. No depicts the people who filmed and put together the "no" campaign.

The movie was organic in its feel. It made you feel like you were standing there, and I liked that. After watching the film, a common complaint was that the events leading up to the plebiscite were simplified, and while I'm sure this is true, I like the ideas behind the film. A film doesn't capture every aspect of history - it just takes one part and puts it in the spotlight. While I'm sure the campaign was not the only thing that led people to vote no, it simplifies it for someone who only knew the name Pinochet prior to the film. I was able to casually follow along, and it interested me enough to read up on the regime. But anyway, about the actual film. I think the acting was pretty good with Gael García Bernal doing a great job as René Saavedra. Antonia Zegers' character seemed a bit... pointless to me - in fact, the whole romance did - but she did a good job. I find I don't really have much to say since I just took the film as telling me a part of history, but it was an interesting watch. Like I said, it makes the story accessible to outside viewers, though trust me when I say the whole story is even more interesting. But it captures a little bit at the end and how the people in the "no" campaign really believed that Chile was going to see happiness in the future. I can't really speak about its current status, but from I've read, it has definitely improved since Pinochet's time. But again, I don't really know much about Chile, so I can only put my hands in the air with this one and say, hey, check it out if you want to get a little piece of Latin American history.

By the way, that song the women sing at one point? The No me gusta, no/ No lo quiero, no? Catchy as hell.