Watch Chronicle of an Escape

"Chronicle of an Escape" is a thrilling Argentine film that tells the true story of an Argentine footballer, Claudio Tamburrini, who was kidnapped in Buenos Aires in 1977 during the military dictatorship. The film, directed by Adrián Caetano, is set in the late 1970s, during one of the most turbulent periods in Argentine history.

The movie begins with a young Claudio Tamburrini (played by Pablo Echarri) being seduced by the offer of a new football contract, only to find himself the victim of a brutal kidnapping by a group of right-wing extremists. Along with other kidnapping victims, he is taken to a secret detention center where he is interrogated and tortured.

The film portrays the harrowing experiences of the prisoners, as they are subjected to beatings, electric shocks, and other forms of torture to extract information. The torture scenes are depicted in a realistic and graphic way, highlighting the brutality of the dictatorship and the impact it had on its victims.

Amidst this bleak setting, the film introduces the figure of the warden of the detention center, referred to only as "The Doctor" (played by Rodrigo de la Serna). The Doctor is portrayed as a complex character whose motives and actions remain ambiguous throughout the movie. He is shown as someone who is also victimized by the dictatorship in his own way, and who has to grapple with his conscience to make sense of the atrocities he commits.

The tension in the film builds as Tamburrini and his fellow prisoners plan their escape. The movie's title takes on a double meaning, as it not only refers to the physical escape from the detention center, but also to the psychological escape from the trauma of the dictatorship.

Through tight pacing and skilled direction, the film manages to maintain the audience's attention even in a confined setting. One of the most tense and suspenseful scenes occurs when the prisoners are digging a tunnel to escape, and they discover a long-forgotten corpse that forces them to contemplate their own mortality.

The acting in "Chronicle of an Escape" is top-notch, with several standout performances. Rodrigo de la Serna is particularly compelling as the Doctor, capturing the character's internal struggle and moral ambiguity. Pablo Echarri also delivers a strong performance as Tamburrini, conveying the intense emotions of a man caught in a nightmare.

Overall, "Chronicle of an Escape" is a powerful film that provides a window into a dark chapter of Argentine history. While not necessarily an easy watch, it is a thought-provoking and moving account of human resilience in the face of oppression.

Chronicle of an Escape is a 2006 thriller with a runtime of 1 hour and 44 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.1.