Wie man sich Feinde macht

The Argentinian movie Cómo ganar enemigos, was shown in the U.S. with the translated title of How to Win Enemies (2014). It was written and directed by Gabriel Lichtmann.

A young lawyer, Lucas, meets Barbara. She's an intelligent, interesting, beautiful woman. They end up in his home together, and, the next morning, she is gone and so is his money. (It's quite a bit of money, because, from context, in Argentina large amounts of money change hands in cash, rather than bank teller's notes. Lucas has withdrawn all his savings for a payment on his new home. Now it's gone.)

Lucas is no fool. He realizes that he's not the first man to be seduced and then robbed by a clever woman. However, he keeps saying, "She's not a thief." What I think he means is, "This was no ordinary seduce and run." Barbara knows about his interests and they match her interests completely. How could she know this, if it wasn't a setup?

Lucas sets about using his brains, honed by his reading of mystery stories. Whether Lucas can find Barbara and get his money back is the plot of this film. It's a fascinating journey, in a dark sort of way.

We saw this film at The Little Theatre, as part of the excellent Rochester Jewish Film Festival. Lucas and his family are Jewish, but this really isn't a "Jewish film." They just happen to be Jewish, but the story would work as well if they were not.

As far as I can tell, the film isn't available on DVD. I always feel strange reviewing a movie that other IMDb members can't see. Maybe it will come to a festival in your area, or maybe it will eventually be available for the small screen

I enjoyed this movie, which currently has a dismal 6.4 rating on IMDb. I think it deserves better. See it if you can.