The Death of Pinochet (La Muerte de Pinochet)

The death of General Augusto Pinochet on December 10, 2006, spurred divergent emotional responses among the Chilean people. While many looked back in anguish and horror at the years that Pinochet ruled as the head of a military junta, others celebrated the former leader's strong anti-Communist policy. Filmmakers Bettina Perut and Ivan Osnovikoff use the news of Pinochet's death as the embarkation point for an unusual documentary that mixes nonfiction filmmaking with dramatizations of the Chilean public reaction to Pinochet's death. While the subject is certainly deserving of consideration—no one in Chile was without opinion regarding Pinochet's style of government—the filmmakers strangely opt for an experimental approach to their work, filming interviewees with extreme close-ups of their lips, eyes, hands, and feet. One woman is constantly presented within an oversized frame made of flowers. The visual aspects quickly become ridiculous to the point where the core subject is lost amongst the oddball imagery. Even worse is a poorly staged recreation of a pro-Pinochet rally, in which a photogenic crowd taunts the “Communist faggots” that opposed the dictator. Fans of avant-garde works may appreciate this, but others will find it off-putting. Optional. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)