Tiempo de valientes

I sit through movies like "Tiempo de valientes" and I want to talk about cinema for hours. The admiration this movie caused me is beyond my own limits of explanation, because I'm watching the scenes of the film and I search inside my thoughts for film-making ideas and dialogue innovations that could emerge from something bigger than Damian Szifron's mind.

Looking the environment, so uncompromised, so simple, I'm thinking; this man is a genius. No wonder he created what is probably the best television show Argentina ever witnessed, and then a first movie full of elements some contemporary directors haven't still achieved. "El fondo del mar" is the name and, it awakened (a few years ago), my enthusiasm for our everyday cinema.

Starting his journey from people's daily real lives, Szifron goes where Pablo Trapero never could in "El Bonaerense"; the Federal Police Department's life. Trapero's film was a journey into a man's mind and experiences, not into the places he saw. Yes, there was a detailed training and lots of crime situations, but Szifron in "in there", his is more of a detective story, like the ones we know and love, with the mysteries and the thrilling music.

But there's a lot of humanity in his writing, and he shows us his investigation through the eyes of his main characters, Alfredo Díaz and Mariano Silverstein. There are a lot of actors of great caliber in the film, but these two actors are the ones the film can't do without. The first character (Luis Luque) is a detective that has just found out his wife cheats on him; and has to work on a case.

The second one is a psychiatrist that is assigned the treatment of the detective. He wants to deal with him in regular sessions but the sheriff takes advantage of the time disposition and suggests he joins Díaz in his routines: "It's nothing, the usual stuff; no problem". But it is bigger than that, and it will unfold a part of the doctor's personality he didn't know.

The relationship developed between the two leads can't be explained unless it is observed, because it regards such a complexity that demonstrates how talented are some men like Szifron that are trying, today, to leave a signature in our history. Reaching points of unbelievable spontaneity, during a high pressure situation, Díaz tells Silverstein: "How do we continue our treatment?", and Silverstein answers: "No, I'm not your doctor. You call me to have dinner; I'm your friend": we laugh because we can't help it.

And we can't help laughing when Díaz crashes a car in the street and doesn't gives importance to it, or when he trespasses all the red lights in the street, or when he smokes pot in his police patrol and Silverstein can't believe it (but then smokes it too because he's screwed up); or when Silverstein tries to be friendly with Díaz's robber friends. Magic from Diego Peretti is what we receive there. He, a psychiatrist himself, gives a performance in plan "Locas de amor", but impresses with all his range. Luis Luque on the other hand, is back on track with a top-notch portrayal that reminds us the great actor he is.

There's a passion I have for this, and as I said, I could write about it for hours, but unfortunately that's not the way it works and I have to be precise and summarize. Although I have to watch a lot of the old movies and study them, I could assure that "Tiempo de valientes" is the comedy Argentina had been waiting for and never got…Until now.

This film is about a psychiatrist becoming an unlikely hero because he got attached to do a community service in the police department.

I must say the direction is great. The film is made in a fun way, which makes it a great fast paced comedy. I like the dialog a lot as well, the psychiatrists lines are particularly witty. The most memorable scene is when the cop forces a confession from the psychiatrist's wife, that is so hilaroius1 Cops really know what they are doing! One thing though, is that the film does not portray Argentinian military well, I wonder if they had any problems in showing the film in Argentina. To sum up, this film is a great and fun comedy, it surely will make you happy!

This movie is Damian Szifrón's second immersion in movies after his excellent character study in "El Fondo del Mar". With "Tiempo De Valientes" he creates extremely well done characters, far away from prototypes and with an unprecedented chemistry between them. I've seen Szifron's talent to present every character in a lighthearted way but just enough to involve us emotionally with them. His control over them is magnificent, so he restores on the movie a great direction and an overall brilliantly polished script, the characters laugh and cry with real sentiment and invite the viewer to join them in their emotions and their evolution on screen.

The Spanish takes over the English, the Buenos Aires urban landscape at night replaces Hollywood sets and the premise is just as interesting as any other, so we have a film daring to compete over Hollywood's Machinery.

But I want you to see the movie mainly because I've never dealt with such endearing characters, all of them. It seems the script suits perfectly to the actors and vice versa. I really believe with a film making like this Argentina is really up to the Competition.

This was a fun movie to watch. Great chemistry between Luque and Peretti on screen, good character development.

If you loved Los Simuladores you must watch this.

Impeccable production characterizes this jewel of a film. The photography, as realistic as present technique allows it to be, introduces us in intimate contact to this couple --the policeman and his psychoanalyst-- so cozily that we feel we are there with them, following their casual conversation in the car, few minutes into the movie, while looking at a lovingly photographed Buenos Aires on hand picked locations as if we are just seeing a background on an apparently casual route.

The camera movements are awesome. Its smoothness throughout the whole movie makes of every scene a natural happening helped by a precise use of lighting, either for the day scenes or the night time.

What can we say about the director --Damián Szifron-- and his actors? they are a sheer joy in every scene --not only Diego Peretti and Luis Luque, the above mentioned couple of psychoanalyst and patient --every single actor in this movie is role perfect, delivering their lines with a naturalness that was absolutely unknown in the historical Argentinian films. There are many clever lines, in the comedy scenes and in the dark --very dark-- serious moments, specially with that cameo intervention of Gabriela Iscovich --the psychoanalyst wife-- in a hilarious role.

A superbly entertaining film with a bit of everything, comedy, noir, mystery, violence, all done with that Argentinian flavor unique to this country, like that scene in the policeman car, where the three guys are drinking Mate --the Argentinian familiar drink par excellence-- as if drinking Mate in a police car was a natural, everyday situation.

Excellent film from any point of view.