“Ingeniously duplicitous…one of the most clever, most enjoyable thrillers in years.” - Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune
“Watching the film is like observing a chess game in which all of the pieces are in plain view but one player has figured out a way to cheat.” - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
“Watch your briefcase, your suitcase, the door, the window, the car... watch your savings... watch your ass,” veteran grifter Marcos (Ricardo Darín) cautions the novice Sebastián (Gastón Pauls), pointing out the ever-present schemers, shoplifters, and thieves lining the streets of Buenos Aires. Fabián Bielinsky’s celebrated film captures the anxious atmosphere in Argentina at the turn of the century and anticipates the country’s 2001 financial crash—an early sign that global growth could have disastrous limits.
Awards & Nominations
2001 Argentine Film Critics Association Awards - Winner, Best Film, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Editor, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress
2001 Toronto International Film Festival - Official Selection
Contact Zones: Cinema of Globalization, 1989–2024
Fall 2026 Lecture Series
“We might have come to the end of something,” Adam Curtis reflected recently, referring to "globalization," which began with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. But just how well do we know this world that we were, until recently, living in? Brief lectures before screenings and open discussions afterwards will cover background on local histories related to films in the series as well as theories of globalization, neoliberalism, migration, and digital culture. Presented in collaboration with the School of the Art Institute of Chicago’s Department of Art History, Theory, and Criticism. Lecturer: Professor Daniel R. Quiles. Select titles offered with Sunday encores; encores do not include lecture.
The Film Center is ADA accessible. This presentation will be projected without open captions. The theater is hearing-loop equipped. For accessibility requests, please email filmcenter@saic.edu