Headless Woman [DVD]

Occasionally one encounters a film that seems to be both of the extremes attributed to it by fans and detractors. "La Mujer Sin Cabeza" is a very strong examination of disassociation, of a society divided by class, enthnicity and gender. The heroine is experiencing First World problems in a society that is simultaneously First and Third World. I admired the way this was introduced, and done without any rage, indeed everyone is extremely polite to each other (taking into account the emotion). Yet at the same time it moves at a snail's pace, and many a viewer will lose the will to live long before they reach the end. It seemed the longest 86 minutes of my life. I was reminded of "La Prise De Pouvoir Par Louis XIV" everything happens at a gentle pace even though the events are momentous, but then I read about Louis XIV a lot, Argentinian society is not my strong point. And that is probably the clue as someone(was it Lincoln) said those of you who like this sort of thing will find this is the sort of thing you like.

As an arthouse film for those of a contemplative disposition - five+ stars
As a film for the casual viewer - one star.

The heroine was particularly well-played.

This is definitely one of those films that you either love or you hate. It is either a very boring and wilfully obscure piece of arthouse nonsense, or it is a masterpiece. You will either feel you have wasted a good 90 minutes of your life, or you may think you have seen one of the finest studies of detachment and disorientation that has ever graced the screen. It does not allow you the comfort of middle ground. Directed by Lucrecia Martel and co produced by Pedro and Agustin Almodovar, it is perhaps unsurprising that this film was directed by a woman. Who else but a woman would be able to fully understand the labyrinthal female mind, especially during a time of great emotional upheaval.

In the film Maria Onetto brilliantly plays Veronica a middle aged dentist, who whilst momentarily distracted at the wheel of her car hits a large object in the road. Is it a dog or is it a person? There is a telling close up of Vero as she struggles to compose herself, whilst clearly on the brink of complete panic. It is never clear what the object in the road is, and we don't get to find out as she drives away. We then follow Vero as she struggles to carry on with the normality of her ordered family life. But the trauma of the accident has clearly affected her psychologically and she seems to become more and more detached from those around her. There is tension in every phone call, which holds the fear that her dark secret will become exposed.

As the study of a person on the verge of a complete mental breakdown, this is indeed a masterful film, helped by the best female performance I have seen in a long time. Maria Onetto's subtle and studied performance is simply superb. She is the glue that holds the fabric of the film together! The directors clever use of camera angles, shots of torsos and ghostly out of focus figures in the background, all add to the increasing sense of detachment and anst that the lead character is undergoing. There is certainly much to admire in this film, and I would disagree with those who thought it pretentious. Okay it does not always make riveting viewing, but it appears to my simple mind to be a genuine attempt to push the boundaries of cinema and give us something different to chew on, instead of the normal ham egg and chips film. It is an innovative and intelligent look into the the almost disembodied and tortured mind of an individual suffering crippling disorientation as a result of trauma and guilt. It is not an easy watch, and can seem baffling at times, but does reward the patient and open minded viewer.

'The Headless Woman', a great B-movie film name, is the first film i've seen from Argentinian director Lucrecia Martel. The story is simple enough, a woman is a driver involved in a hit-and-run incident and has to endure the consequences of her actions.

But this is not your typical Hitchcockian thriller, Martel has crafted an enigmatic exploration of life in Argentina. The story focuses on Vero (Maria Onetto), who was involved in the hit-and-run. The accident left Vero concussed, and suffering from amnesia. Stylistically, this is where the film becomes complicated. We view the film through Vero's unfocused struggle to regain her senses, similar to Christopher Nolan's brilliant 'Memento' but without the narration, and we slowly begin to understand who her family and friends are, her status and privilege. The film never gives you an easy answer, every person and every situation since the accident isn't explained in any detail because Vero hasn't understood it yet either. You may assume the first man that greets and makes love to her since the accident is her husband, but he turns out to be her cousin's husband.

She confesses to her husband that she had killed someone in the car accident, but there was no trace of a body but a dead dog. Her cousin's husband works for the police, he found nothing either. Tiny snippets of information and subtle physical gestures and movements reveal some clues. A child has disappeared in the area and is eventually discovered in a storm drain. Was he her victim? Were the fingerprints on the car's window his or those of her own child? But Vero starts to question herself, wondering if she really did kill a person, was it only a dog or nothing at all, did the accident really happen? Her hospital admission suddenly disappeared from the records, as does her stay in a hotel. Is it all a cover-up by her husband, her cousin's husband, and her brother?

'The Headless Woman' is an attack on the privileged and political elite in Argentina, following in the footsteps of other recent Argentinian film's such as the brilliant 'The Secret In Their Eyes'. The disappearance of Vero's records is a reference to the disappearance of Argentinians in the military dictatorships of the 1970's and 80's. We see how Vero's family is surrounded by lower-class people who are employed as cooks, gardeners and labourers. These people are all seen in the periphery as if they are invisible to Vero and her family.

'The Headless Woman' is a very clever film, especially the unusual use of camera angles and sound on the peripheral characters. But this is not an easy film to watch as your concentration levels are tested to the maximum. Clues are always in the periphery, sometimes passing you by just too quickly. Maria Onetto is excellent as Vero, but her character intrigued me. Nobody, not her husband, her family or friends noticed anything different about her since the accident. Everybody carried on as normal, so either Vero never had an accident or this was merely normal behaviour from her!

The pace of the film was just too slow, the film's complexity makes for repeated viewing but the film is so subdued and wilfully obtuse that you eventually lose interest. Lucrecia Martel's contempt for the Argentinian bourgeoisie is unmistakeable, we see through Vero a smug Argentinian elite who are above the law, with a lack of guilt, remorse and understanding towards any class below them.