Papeles secundarios

1989
1h 57m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

An aging actress gets trapped in the generational conflicts and political scheming of a well-known but decaying theater company and loses her career and the hope of ever loving again. Select... Read allAn aging actress gets trapped in the generational conflicts and political scheming of a well-known but decaying theater company and loses her career and the hope of ever loving again. Selected one of the 100 Best Latin American Films of All Times (#29), Poll of Latin American Cri... Read allAn aging actress gets trapped in the generational conflicts and political scheming of a well-known but decaying theater company and loses her career and the hope of ever loving again. Selected one of the 100 Best Latin American Films of All Times (#29), Poll of Latin American Critics (1996). Cuban entry as Best Foreign Film for Oscars, 1990. Chosen as Best Cuban Film ... Read all

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IMDb RATING

6.0/10

YOUR RATING

2User reviews

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 13 wins & 3 nominations total

Photos5

User reviews2

6.061

Featured reviews

7marionaito

Landmark Cuban film of the 80s.

Considered by almost all Cuban critics as the most outstanding film from this country in the 80s, Papeles secundarios is important for changing the stereotypic vision held officially before by Cuban cinema. Its daring treatment of the intimate conflicts of a mature actress in a group theater as a symbol of the struggle for a personal achievement in life is combined with dramatic complexities of a love story with a young newcomer actor. A difficult and inspired film beautifully photographed.

6EdgarST

Supporting Roles

Praised by Cuban critics as the best film made in the island during the 1980s, "Papeles secundarios" was a departure from the socialist realism of most productions that had been filmed in the previous decades, but in my opinion it resembled too much the fashionable dramas of those years (as the ones directed by Alan Parker, a much admired director by many Cuban filmmakers, cinephiles and film critics), with ceiling fans, smoky atmospheres, highly contrasted cinematography, and a feeling of chic angst in the midst of generalized poverty. Leading a cast of pretty faces, Luisa Pérez Nieto gave an impressive performance, but she was unfortunately not given good parts after this, and she was lost from sight when she left Cuba.